Society demands
by Easternspirit
Summary: Roy is in love, and has the perfect plan of getting Ed closer to him....but things take a turn for the worst when Roy's perfect plan is the final push ed needed to make a decision he long wanted to make ....rating for later chapters: shounenaixlemon
1. Getting you closer

**Getting you closer…..**

_Tears stained his normally spotless uniform, soaking his gloves and making Roy look completely out of character. The only thing that could be heard in his room were his sobs, and the rain falling down on thestreets outside, matching his mood. Riza, after making the rest of her colleagues leave the room silently, wanted to comfort Roy somehow, but knew that there was nothing she could do to help him……._

It was planned so perfectly…..

Roy Mustang, womanizer of Central ( hell, the whole universe), hottest guy in the military and mini-skirt loving, slack-off champion master of Flame alchemy…..

Was in love with a guy………

The surprise was mostly on Roy's part. He never even imagined a man like himself having a thing for guys, let alone be in love with one. And certainly not Mr I'll-bite-your-knees-off-if-you-call-me-short Elric, the loud, obnoxious, impulsive, straightforward and hotheaded blonde that has been under his command since the age of 12…

Leaning back in his chair ( and slacking off as usual, Farman sighing at seeing his boss enjoy the privileges of being in a higher rank…again), Roy reflected on the past 5 years. So much has happened…….

They started off like enemy's. Roy had no desire to be the head of a daycare instead of a military department (although he couldn't help Hughes acting like he should belong in a daycare), so he send the shrimp off with his new clock, on various missions that would keep him busy, and save Roy from having headaches due to Ed's rants every time he made an "innocent" comment about his height. Every time the blond would come back empty handed, he could make fun of him, and then send him off again…..

But as the first years passed by, Roy began to notice that he anticipated the return of the blond more and more. He made him spend more time in his office, asking questions about his last mission till the last detail he could think of, and when he had to send Ed on a mission again, he would, unconsciously, made sure that it would be one closer to home than the one before. So it wouldn't be as long as the last time till he could hear the blond approaching his office, his metal leg making a louder "thump" on the floor than his other leg, so he had to quickly put away the blonde's file, that had his photo attached to it, waiting for the familiar greeting ( or rather, the lack of it) and the conversation about to follow….

When Ed sat in his office, he was not very responsive. He just wanted to get it over with, knowing that he was about to be scolded by the Colonel and he would probably get a comment about his height too…witch frustrated him even more, because THIS was something he couldn't help. He always had a part to play in the failure of his mission, when he was completely honest with himself, he KNEW that the failures were partly his fault….

But his height was a different matter….he was frustrated himself about it too, and he didn't needed that Mustang to rub it in his face…

Roy KNEW that he made Ed angry…that he touched a sensitive spot, but he couldn't help it. At first, he did it just to irritate Ed, make him angry….the more angry he was at Roy, the less likely it was that he screwed up his mission…just to prove the Taisha wrong about saying that children shouldn't belong in the military. Roy didn't mean that, of course. He was the one to convince Ed to take the test in the first place, but saying things like that was exactly the stimulation Ed needed to try even harder to succeed….

But that changed too….

Ed would never respond to slight hints, to subtle kindness….he only responded to insults. Roy tried it all: he started acting more kindly, making less comments about his height, offering him a drink when he came in, actually complementing him on a successful mission…..but he didn't receive the response he hoped for…No genuine "thanks", no talk about other things than military relates stuff, no friendly teasing or joking.. .he found himself, more than anything, wanting to be acknowledged by the blonde alchemist.

He remembered his mother and father having a fight once, and later when his mom brought him to bed, he asked if it was bad what they did. His mom then said, that all bad things have a good side: it would be better to have a fight than to be ignored, because fighting means that you're at least acknowledged…..

Roy always kept this in the back of his mind when he said something about Ed's lack of height again, because he would at least get a response, a hand slamming on his desk, a file being throwed to his head, the blonds complete attention……..

It was better that nothingness he would usually receive…

When he and Ed said their goodbyes, Ed running of for his final confrontation with Dante, probably never returning alive, Roy stood nailed to the ground. His mind saying that he had his own mission to carry out, his heart screaming to run after him, protect him and make sure he's save. At that very moment, when it didn't seem to matter anymore, Roy realized that he was in love…..perhaps for the first time in his life.

Contemplating all of this, a pencil hanging from his lips, eyes locked at the clock ticking away the time, Roy thinks about his current situation. Being head over heels for a guy that only sees him as the biggest pain in the ass one kind find on this planet. Far from a good situation were he could make his move. And he only had himself to blame for it…..

But than again, his hopes of ever getting closer to ed that just a verbal fight were raised with his return. Roy's love, cooled and buried deep inside his heart for the last couple of years, was revived and burned again, stronger than ever before. He needed to concentrate on behaving normally when ed sat in his office, discussing the matter about him entering the military again at the age of 17, after 3 years….finally back in the military….and in his office..

Roy already decided by then that Ed would become a researcher, staying in an apartment in Central and having the entire library and all the top-secret files to himself. He didn't needed field work anymore right? Sure, he had to be send off now and then, when It concerned matters that required Ed's knowledge about alchemy, but most of the time he was in Central…..and Roy had never been happier, seeing ed almost every day in his favorite lunchroom, reading tons of books in the library, getting annoyed of Hughes trying to practically shove photo's of Elicia down his throat….. he never got any headaches again from his ranting , he loved to hear them, even if they weren't addressed to him…..

But it wasn't enough……

Farman was transferred to another section of the military, leaving a gap in Roy's team. Although he felt sorry for a good soldier and friend to leave him, he now had the change he had been waiting for so long…..

He already talked things over with the Furher, and made all the necessary arrangements. Edward Elric, state alchemist, would get promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel, working in the same office as Roy and working directly under him again….

It was all planned so perfectly. He and Ed would now be working fulltime in each others presence, desk to desk, and Roy was anxiously looking forward to it………..

Ed was back in Risembool at the moment, spending some time with his brother and Winry for the upcoming Christmas and Al's birthday. He would have to send the letter, writing the address with shaking fingers, folding the letter with unusual care and making Fury guard it to the post office like the future of the country depended on it……

If Roy only realized that as soon as Ed would read that letter, things would change forever……for the bad or for the good….


	2. The decision

The Decision……

Ed was the last one to get up the morning the letter arrived. Yawning and scratching his head a bit, he came walking down the stairs in his pyama bottoms, instantly going to the kitchen to make coffee. Al was already busy making breakfast, but quickly stepped away from the door when he heard Winry's exited scream and the mailman taking cover….he knew better than to stand near the door when Winry received the ordered tools she had been waiting for. Ed was still too sleepy to notice, and therefore was too late to take cover when the automail-fangirl came storming into the house, not being able to wait to show everyone what in the eyes of normal people must have looked like an ordinary toolkit, but in the eyes of Winry must have been the holy grail. Anyway, Ed got completely knocked over in the process, slammed to the ground by the Rockbell Whirlwind, said whirlwhind bounched up and down in the living room, constantly blabbering to Al about how good these tools were, top of the line, handmade craftsmanship bla bla bla…you get the point….Al decided to just nod and stay quit.

Ed, finally realizing that he was not asleep anymore, gathered the pieces of his coffee mug together, but noticed a small envelope laying next to it in the process. Winry must have dropped it in her enthusiasm. He picked it up, but then noticed that the letter was addressed to him. Adding up the familiar handwriting and the fact that only the military people knew were he was staying, he could only conclude that this letter came from Roy Mustang…..

Sneaking out of the room ( although that was not so hard, Al being kidnapped by Winry for a demonstration of her new tools), Ed went up the stairs to his own room, locking the door behind him. It was not like Mustang to send him letters, he would normally call him so he could insult him live, there was no fun in sending a letter because then he couldn't see the blond alchemist freaking out. So he had no idea what to expect…….

He yanked open the envelope and pulled out the, rather officially looking, letter:

_Central, 19 december_

_To: Fullmetal Alchemist_

_Subject: Promotion_

_Edward Elric. You have proven yourself an excellent alchemist, a good leader in times of need, and an excellent researcher for the military and you country. The council and I have decided that you are to be promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel. This will include a considerable raise in your salary, responsibility over the a large department of the research faculty, and…._

Ed couldn't believe this was happening. He had been in doubt about his military life and career for some time, and now this letter came…

As for his doubt, there were several reasons: Aunt Pinako died 3 months after he returned, and Winry couldn't run the whole business on her own. Al was helping her out a great deal, and with Ed having a job, there was enough income for them to make a living, but it wasn't much. Ed also didn't feel like he belonged in the military anymore. He entered to find the philosophers stone, and after that he entered to make a living, because it was the only job he was suitable for. Until last month….

He finally turned 18, and was now legally and adult. On the same day that he was celebrating his birthday for the first time in years, he received something else beside birthday cards. It was a letter from the board of the Dancor Univeristy of Chemistry and Practical Alchemy. They were short on experienced teachers in the practical side of Alchemy, and given his reputation of being a genius state alchemist ( and finally an adult), they asked him to take the job of the former teacher of Practical Alchemy. It was a good proposition too, because he would earn a lot more than in the military, didn't have to go carry out missions he disliked, fighting for ideals he didn't believe in and using violence against people that didn't deserve it…at least, not all of them..

But at the other side, Ed felt guilty about leaving the military. They had been family to him, all of them being more that colleagues. They risked their lives to help him out, and even after he betrayed that trust several times, they still forgave him and accepted him back. The military was a like second home to him. Could he just leave like that, throwing his life there away like an old pair of shoes?

Ed had been pondering a long time about accepting the job at Dancor or just asking for a salary raise at the military. Sighing, he red the last line again:…

_This will include a considerable raise in your salary, responsibility over the a large department of the research faculty, and being under the direct command of Colonel Roy Mustang, assisting him in his office duties and evaluations of reports. Therefore, your new office will be A22._

_Should you accept the promotion, please send or bring this letter, signed, to Colonel Roy Mustang, and he will take care of the rest._

_We hope that you will accept the promotion and work hard to improve the military's strength and the welfare of your country._

_Signed_

_The Furher._

Ed just stood there, the letter slowly sliding out of his hands, drifting towards the floor…..

This was the last straw….

It was like the fog in his brain disappeared, he suddenly knew what he had to do, what he should have done long ago. Grabbing his travel bag and the letter, he went to the front door, leaving Al and Winry staring after him, trying to figure out what Ed was up to this time. Winry wanted to ask something but Al stopped her. He recognized that look. Ed was now completely focused on his goal and nothing would stop him …..

Ed only left a note in the kitchen, were he stopped to grab a snack for in the train:.

I'll be back before Christmas…… 

Reading the letter over and over again, while sitting in the train heading for Central, doubt began to creep up on him. Was he really giving THAT up so easily? He didn't even knew if there even was a THAT in the first place, but with the decision he now had in mind, THAT would never be …for sure. Then perhaps, he could start living like an average citizen, having an honorable job, earning his money in an acceptable way, perhaps even having a family some day. Something society demanded from him in the first place, but was never able to live up to. As soon as he carried out his final mission, hopefully that would be over….

It was December the 22th and Roy was looking out the window of his office, A22, every hour since he sent the letter. (not that he would normally work or anything). Somehow, his colleagues felt that they shouldn't make a comment about their boss slacking off even more than usual, although the whole situation was still strange. What was he waiting for?

Riza, of course, knew about the letter, since she was close friends with the Furher's secretary. She was happy for Roy finally getting the change he waited for so long…( although she was mad at him for all the files piling up on his desk)

Roy then suddenly snapped out of his thoughts, sat down in his chair, and started working on his files, like he had been doing that the whole day.( needless to say that all the other guys were in shock). Riza smiled slightly, having seen was Roy saw as well: the blond haired alchemist, slowly approaching the building, the letter in his metal hand….

It wasn't long before Roy could hear the familiar "thumps" of Ed's metal leg on the floor and the banging of this office door against the wall as he opened it. Fury, Hughes and Havoc looked up, surprised to see the Fullmetal Alchemist here when he took the week off….

Roy didn't even dare look up, hardly knowing what to say. He just pretended like Ed wasn't there like he usually did ( and then blaming the stash of paperwork on his desk for not being able to see the blond alchemist). He just waited for Ed to claim his attention, because THIS TIME he HAD to acknowledge Roy. There was no way around it….

And the response came…..

Ed slowly walked to Roy's desk, the other guys in stand-by mode to take cover, because they expected a fight ( or at least a verbal one, but mostly one that included throwing things against each other)….

"I came here about that promotion" he started, his voice sounding a bit raspy. This one comment got the attention of the guys, all of them standing up at once at hearing the word "promotion". Fury asked what kind of promotion, Riza explaining that it was for Lieutenant-Colonel, Brenda cheering for Ed, Havoc complaining that he didn't wanted to be ordered around by a kid, but smiling from ear to ear too,( Hughes saying that thanks to Ed he now has a bedtime story to tell to Elizia, and all the other guys stepping away from him a bit) The room was filled with cheers and applause for Ed, everybody being impressed about his achievements at such an early age and knowing that he deserved this…..

But Ed didn't share their excitement…….

Riza was the first one to notice that Ed didn't look like someone who just got promoted to a rank no-one else could achieve at that age. She began to feel a warning signal in the pit of her stomach, the one you get when you realize that something is terribly wrong…..

Roy smiled up to him, extended his hand, wanting to congratulate the blond and welcoming him back into his regime, under his wings……..

Ed's hand never found his way to Roy's though…..

Then the other guys noticed that Ed refused to be as cheerful/jealous ( and insane in Hughes case) as they were and fell silent when they saw the lack of excitement on Ed's face….

Roy withdrew his hand slowly when he saw that Ed refused to respond…….The same horrible feeling that made Riza break out into a sweat just seconds ago now crept up on him….his eyes drifted to the enveloppe, and he slowly pulled out the letter with shaking hands, his blood running cold when he saw it…..

Not only was the promotion letter unsigned….

It wasn't the only letter in the envelope……..

The second one…..was a request to quit the military….immideately…


	3. Saying Goodbye

**Saying Goodbye**

Ed kept his gaze locked on the floor, as if he was trying to bore a hole into it. He felt ashamed ….not only because he refused the promotion they offered him, witch must have been hard to arrange, but more because he had to announce his leave at the same time, not giving his friends the time to let all of it sink in. But there was no going back now….

Roy, after having completely convinced himself that this was NOT a nightmare he could wake up from, found himself overwhelmed with a thousand emotions…

Anger. Because after he worked so hard to get Ed this promotion and after all he did for him in the past, the blond alchemist just said "no" and would leave any moment like all the previous years he worked here, all the times he sat in Roy's office, all the times they ended up together in the same lunchroom….all the times Roy took care of the soldiers who were nagging Ed about his height….never took place.

Shock. This was the last thing he could imagine happening. He never dreamt of Ed refusing an offer like this, knowing he could use the money and his higher rank would give him more respect among the other soldiers, but he him leaving the military was even more unlikely to happened…….Why did he do this?

But most of all: Hurt. A hurt going deeper than Roy thought hurt could be, tearing him apart. Ed a just stepped on his heart, crushing it beneath his feet without caring…..or more: knowing. Roy couldn't say a word. He realized in that very moment that as soon as Ed left his office, there would be no waiting at the window to see the blond alchemist approaching the building….no return , not to HQ, not to his favorite lunchroom…..perhaps not even to Central.

It was highly unlikely for Roy to be able to ever see Ed again………and that realization hit him the very moment he looked up into Ed's eyes and saw his earnest in it…..

The letter just slid from his hands onto his desk ………the sound of the paper contacting the wood of his desk the only sound that could be heared.

Riza knew she had to act now, because Roy was about to lose his composure. His usual mask, the mask were he could hide all his emotions and thoughts behind, was starting to fall apart: his lips slightly trembling, tears forming as his eyes turned huge as he realized that he had to say goodbye now…..that he would shake Ed's hand one last time and thank him for all the good work he did in the past……for all the time he shared in his office…..for all the times he gave Roy butterflies in his stomach by just giving him a hint of a smile ….

Riza suddenly stepped between Roy's desk and Ed who was still waiting for some kind of response from Roy. A thousand questions, an angry snap, a look of triumph about finally getting rid of him……

Riza_:" are you out of your MIND! This is a once in a lifetime-change Fullmetal, you served here all those years with us and we care about you! And you just throw away all of that with a mere letter……did you just come here to say goodbye and never return, like the time you went through the gate!"_

All the other guys were standing in shock as well. Everyone of them would have felt like the luckiest man to just be promoted like that, none of them having a reason to turn down an offer like this. And even if they could not accept it, they would certainly never leave the military…..They were all looking at the unfolding drama, holding their breath : Roy at the verge of a breakdown, Riza ready to blow Ed's head off if he didn't come back on his decision and Ed just standing there……saying nothing…..

They were all very curious as to what explanation Ed would have for his actions…….

Finally, Ed decided that it had been enough. He hoped that this wouldn't have to be some kind of drama, but he already screwed up and everybody was mad at him. Might as well end it as soon as possible, before he would actually turn back just…..just to see Roy not looking so hurt……

He withdrew his uniform from his bag, washed and folded, and placed it onto Roy's desk, together with his state alchemist watch……..Roy looking at it, his hopes fading away that the blond alchemist would suddenly say that this was all a joke…..this was for real.

_"I'm sorry…………………"_

His voice barely a whisper….only Roy and Riza could hear it. Ed found that there was nothing else he could say at this moment, feeling sorry for everything to end like that. Not wanting to prolong things any further, he grabbed his bag and turned around, slowly walking past Fury, Havoc, Brenda and Hughes, who were all staring at him with a mixture of Sadness, confusion and Anger. Ed closed the door silently behind him, and then walked down the hallway, away from office A22…..for the last time…..

Once he was outside, he started running, dashing through the snow,….like he was running for his life. Perhaps he was afraid that someone might come after him, that Riza would shoot him from the window, or that he would turn around, run back and accept the promotion anyway…..taking away those tears he saw in Roy's eyes……..

Due to his running, he arrived early at the train station. Panting and exhausted, he sat down on one of the benches. Wanting to know the time, he instinctively reached for his pocket watch…..only to feel even more sad as the realization hit him that he was no longer a state alchemist, and therefore, didn't have a pocket watch anymore….

Ed made a mental note to ask a watch for Christmas………although he didn't feel any Christmas spirit at all……

The train arrived on time, and Ed got in, sitting by the window and taking a good look at Central City….it would be a long time before he would see it again, and perhaps he would never return. He didn't have to. There was no more THAT that made him come back to Central every time……..

A few minutes before departure, a jeep suddenly appeared on the train station, racing past the people who ran away to take cover, and in an instand Ed recognized the driver when the jeep stopped…..

Maes Hughes stepped out of the jeep, slamming the door shut, walking towards the window were Ed was sitting, looking deadly serious…..

Ed should have known that it was Hughes coming after him. He was Roy's best friend ( well, so was Riza, but this just wasn't her style) and everyone that made one of Hughes friends hurt would feel his wrath….problem was, that Ed was also one of his friends…..

Ed swallowed and opened the window as Hughes came closer and closer……

Expecting a storm of insults, angry yelling or even a smack in his face, he braced himself for what was about to come……

Hughes just stopped as soon as he stood face to face with Ed…….and he only said one word, the same word that Ed asking himself many times on his way to Central:

"_Why……………."_

Ed hung his head…..there were a few why's……but the biggest why of them all was the worst…..and he knew that Roy would somehow find out what he was about to tell to Hughes anyway…….

He would find out sooner or later…..

Facing Hughes again, who was still waiting impatiently for an answer, Ed decided in that moment that he should at least give an explanation…..one that would destroy THAT and all the ties he had to this city and the people that lived here……..

Hesitating before speaking, Ed was afraid that his voice might be a bit shaky, but he cleared his throat and said:

_"….because….because I can't work with Roy any longer…..and certainly not in the same office….that would kill me…."_

The look in Hughes eyes changed from anger to sadness……he knew that Roy expected to tell him just what made Ed leave, hoping that he could fix it and get the blond alchemist back under his wings…..hoping….that there would still be hope….

Hughes never thought that Ed's ranting against Roy was genuine, as he mostly just overreacted and goofed around a bit with everybody, just like he himself did. He also never thought that, if ed would hold some kind of grudge against Roy, it would make him give up such a great salary raise and an opportunity for a career….

And Hughes realized that there was no way that Roy could fix this. Riza ordered Hughes to make whatever promises possible to keep Ed here, make him come back and talk things over at least….but there was nothing to say at this point…..

Hughes saluted him. Not saying anything else, knowing that Ed made his final decision, and despite his mixed feelings of confusion and anger, he had always been friends with Ed and his brother and felt sorry to see him leave. The only thing he could do from this point on was inviting the Elrics over to his place for dinner now and then, perhaps "accidentally" inviting Roy as well so they could at least talk things over…..

The high-pitched sound of the flute in the air announce that the train was about to leave, and the last passengers said their goodbyes to the loved ones they left behind. Ed saluted Hughes back, overcome with emotion……wishing he had somebody to comfort him, telling him that all would be okay….

Slowly, the train started moving, heading back in the direction of Risembool, transporting Ed on his final journey away from Central. Hughes stood there, watching him leave.

What should he say to Roy……..

Ed wanted to wave at Hughes like he always did when Hughes brought him to the station and send him off, but he found he could not…….

Slumping back into his chair, he suddenly burst out crying, putting his face into his hands…….he couldn't help the tears streaming down his face and the feeling that he did something terrible, almost more terrible than his attempt at human transmutation…….

His body still shaking from the sobs, ed fell asleep, wanting to forget it all…..hoping that he would wake up with his state alchemist pocket watch in his hands……


	4. The impact

_Note from easternspirit_

_( drops dead to the ground): damn, I had a VERY tough week so far……stupid grammar classes…_

_So what I fell asleep, …_

_Anyway, thanks for all the reviewing, it means a lot to me. And sorry for all the "…" and my poor grammar Vanilla Topping ( why not caramel topping? I love caramel…well…until it got stuck in my hair one day), when I red my story over again, I was kinda annoying indeed ( I'll just stick with 3 dots 'kay?).As for my grammar, English is not my "own" language, I learned it in middle school: I live in Holland you see ( and I'm studying Japanese witch makes no sense to everyone around me, but let's put that aside). _

_As for all the other Roy/Ed fangirls out there: I'm the kind of person that loves a happy ending so I will only write a story with a bad one when hell freezes over. It just might take a while before….well…IT happens _

_( evil smirk)_

* * *

Hughes drove back to HQ, feeling mortified at what he was about to tell Roy. He was not only his boss, but also his best friend, and Hughes was convinced that if Roy became Fuhrer, thinks would change for the good in this country. Maybe Roy doesn't seem like it to others who don't know him, but he is actually a very gentle, peace-loving man with a big heart for his country and the people that live in it…although that same heart belongs to a certain blond alchemist at the moment…

Hughes knew things went too good to be true: Roy, promoted at such an early age to Colonel and a favorite for promotion to an even higher rank at the moment, had to have a weak point. There is no men in this world without one. ( while thinking about men and their weak points, Hughes makes a kissy face at Elizia's picture standing on his dashboard). And in Roy's case, it was Ed…

Roy risked his career and his live more than once when the hotheaded kid was involved. He went to great lengths to help him and keep him save without Ed even knowing it, and therefore, Roy didn't get much in response, not even a mere "thank you". He always looked so disappointed when Ed left his office without a goodbye or even an insult. He spoke with Roy as less as possible, and walking away afterwards as if Roy wasn't even there.

Roy, Hughes knew, wanted nothing more than to be acknowledged by Ed…at least as a friend.

Sighing, he parked his jeep and slowly walked up the stairs towards A22, feeling as if his shoes became heavier with each step. He didn't have to wait long before the storm of questions was unleashed ,because as soon as he reached the top of the stairs he saw his fellow colleagues standing outside in the hallway and, upon apprehending him, racing towards him to be the first to know what was going on.

_"were is Ed?"_

_"what did he say?"_

_"is he coming back?"_

_"why didn't he accept the promotion"_

_"did he quit for real?"_

A few shots from Riza's gun were enough to silence the group standing around Hughes, trying to find out what he knew. Riza motioned for Hughes to get into the office, and a stern look directed at Fury, Havoc and Brenda was enough to convince them not to spy at the keyhole. They simply had to wait outside, knowing in their hearts that whatever it was that Hughes had to tell Roy, it would be something terrible…

Roy looked up as soon as Hughes entered, but when he saw that he was alone he realized that Hughes wasn't able to convince the blond alchemist to stay. Disappointed, he slumped back into his chair, motioning for Hughes to take a seat without thinking. His though were fixed on Ed, as they had been for years.

Roy walked all of it through: what could there possibly be so wrong that Ed wanted to leave that badly. Perhaps he couldn't take the constant teasing or the disrespectful attitude of other officers towards him. Some of the military people in a lower rank than Ed made fun of his hair in front of him, pissing him off. If that was the case…well let's just say that Roy was more than eager to make them understand why he was called the flame-alchemist.

Or perhaps he was homesick and missed his brother too much, since he stayed in Central most of the time. They did grew up together and their love and care for each other was something that made Roy envious that he didn't have a brother like that. He could easily understand why he wanted to move back…but he said to Roy that he went back to the military to make a living, for himself and for Al, so he didn't do Al much good by leaving the military…

Or perhaps…perhaps there was someone else Ed wanted to see beside Al. Could it be that Ed found a lover back in Risembool?. Was that the reason he spend more and more weekends back there? Roy didn't dare thinking about that possibility, how could he ever compete to a girl? He didn't even knew for sure if Ed would be into guys or not.

Whatever the reason was, there had to be a way to fix it…

_"Hughes…was did he say? Why didn't you bring him back? Why is he leaving?"_

Hughes remained silent for some time. Riza kept a close eye on his face, seeing the turmoil of emotions in his eyes. She knew that Hughes learned something from Ed, but it had to be something Roy shouldn't know if Hughes was so reluctant to say it.

Roy grew impatient of his silence, and just when he was about to demand that Hughes would tell him, Hughes cleared his throat, reading himself for the impact Ed's words would have…

"_he said that…that he couldn't work with you any longer…"_

Roy's eyes grew wide, as his face became even paler than usual…

"_he said that he could never work with you in the same office.."_

Roy felt the first tear streaming down his face, and he brought his hand up to wipe it away, but even before he did that, another tear from his other eye followed.

"_he said that it would kill him…"_

Riza listened in silence, her anger at Ed building by the second at seeing Roy breaking down before her eyes, silently crying with his face in his hands,… a broken man. It was the first time Hughes and Riza saw Roy so open and vulnerable, both knowing that he would probably never fully recover from the impact that Ed's rejection made on him. Many men in Central City must have been thankful to the Fullmetal Alchemist for breaking Roy like this. Roy now experienced a phenomenon he had never had to face before:

He was dumped.

* * *

Ed arrived back in Risembool at December the 22th, dragging himself back to home, soaked to the bone from the continiously falling snow. He hung up his coat, walked past Winry ( who immediately jumped up apon apprehending him) and Al ( who dropped the vase he was holding upon seeing Ed's face: it was clear that he had cried). He ignored them and all their questions about his whereabouts and what had happened, and he went straight to his room, locking the door behind him.

Ed threw his bag onto his bed, pulling an old box from under it. He opened the lock and searched for something inside, anxiously. He needed this now more than ever, because it would be closest to the real thing…

Finally he retrieved a book, and after placing back all the other (rather similar looking) books, he shut the box. Walking towards his desk he opened it at the page were he stopped writing last time. He sat down, grabbed a pen, and started writing, without stopping for the next few hours, without even changing into dry clothes…

"_Dear Roy….."_

* * *

Al was downstairs, still waiting for his brother to come out of his room so they could talk. After rummaging through his coat, Al found a train ticket to Central and he felt that there was something terribly wrong. Ed was usually quite happy to be back in Risembool, but he was equally anxious to return to Central after spending some time with them.. Al couldn't think of any explanation of why Ed had cried or why he acted so strange.

Just when Al had enough and wanted to go upstairs, stransmutate the door if he had to, and talk to Ed, the phone started ringing. Not expecting a customer at this hour in the morning, he picked up the phone with "_Al Elric_".

Riza was glad that Al picked up the phone instead of Ed…Roy was about to make the biggest mistake of his live and she felt that, with the help of Al, she had to bring Ed to talk to Roy before it was too late…

tbc


	5. What have you done?

**What have you done?**

Al had no idea what Riza was talking about at first, but as their conversation continued it all made sense to him: Ed bringing his uniform with him but returning without it, his ticket to Central……but the tears? If his brother really hated the military, why did he leave? And especially with a promotion like that. He knew that they could use the money, now more than ever. Al resisted the urge to confront his brother outright, and listened to Riza's story instead. She sounded incredibly worried, completely out of character:….

When she entered office A22 the morning before to clean up Roy's desk and give him his daily stash of files, the Colonel was absent. Not that it was out of the ordinary, since Roy was known for sleeping in late. But when the rest of Roy's team arrived and started working behind their desks, the pile of files on Roy's desk still untouched, Riza became a bit worried…it was not like Roy to be THIS late.

At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Riza decided to take action, wanting to confront Roy herself. She knew he was broken inside and he stayed away from work as much as he could…not so much because he didn't want to do it, but he, she felt, was more afraid that he might break down in front of his subordinates. She couldn't really be angry at him at this time…

But still, a broken heart was not a reason to stay away from work. She knew that working hard was the best way to make other thoughts disappear.

Just when Riza was about to leave the building, Sheska came running towards her with a letter of some kind in her hand. She was exhausted and just handed the letter to Riza, trying to catch her breath but still looking frightened, knowing the content of the letter.

Riza just stared at the small piece of paper in complete horror, before it just slipped out of her hands…

Roy volunteered for a post as boarder guard…..in Shakei

The Shakei boarder post was known to be an incredibly cold place, since the boarders that separate Ishbal from Shakei are mountains. There were several small cottages, lined up with about 5 miles distance from one to the other. Everyone getting that job had to live there by himself, for a period of at least 3 years, with a guarantee of fresh mountain snow every day. If it was one thing Roy couldn't stand, it was cold, which made this an even more un-Roy decision…

But this meant far more than that: the boarder posts were mostly for single soldiers without a family or someone that would wait for them to come back. Everybody knew that. You stayed up in the mountains for years, if not forever. To a lot of soldiers, this was the best that ever happened to them: they could fish and hunt, have their own house in the mountains for free and being paid for it all was even better. But for someone like Roy, who is used to be the center of attention, people working for him and warm summer holidays at the beach, this would be pure torture…

But, Riza also realized, the did this to forget the unforgettable, to learn to live with the unbearable: never seeing Ed again…

Riza always thought that people who did things they would normally never do over a broken heart were irrational and weak. But now that she saw how it ruined the Roy she knew for so many years, she realized how much damage it could do. Even though she was not the one being rejected by the love of her live, she felt Roy's pain every day since Ed left the office for the last time…

But that didn't mean that there was nothing she could do. She had to talk things out with Ed, let him speak with Roy, make Roy confess his feelings to Ed…even if Ed didn't like Roy, Roy would feel better if Ed understood his situation so they could part as friends…

She would make Ed go, even if she had to use the ultimate weapon: Al

So she went inside to make a phone call, without even bothering to pick up the letter.

* * *

Al, instead of becoming furious with Ed, became even more confused. He could not believe that Ed left he military just because he hated Roy. It was not the fact that because Ed hated someone he would leave his job that Al could not believe: it was the fact that he said that because he hated ROY that he had to leave that sounded unbelievable to Al.

Al knew Ed his entire life, and he knew that there were a few things about Ed that made Riza's story unbelievable to him:

First: Ed was not the kind of person to hate someone SO MUCH that he would turn down an opportunity like the promotion to help his brother and Winry

Second: Al was convinced that Ed did not hate Roy. Even dislike was not appropriate: There were several people Ed likes that get on this nerves practically all the time: like Winry and the wrenches she (used to) threw at his head all the time, or Hughes stalking him with photo's from Elizia, Major Armstrong trying to hug him again ( or kill him with his pinks sparkles), and of course all those other people making comments about his height or his hair. Roy was just one of the people that was good at getting on his brothers nerves and Ed ranted at him like he always did. It was nothing special.

Third: It was even more confusing to Al that Roy was the reason, whether hate was involved or not, that Ed left the military. Did he not rejoin after they came back because Roy asked him to? Moreover, Al used to tease his brother sometimes when Ed was complaining that he had to go the office of the Mustangizer again, already dreading that cocky smile of the Colonel because he came back from a screwed-up mission. Al teased Ed with the fact that he, when going back to Central, he was more hurried than normal. Al would always say then "_aren't you not the slightest bit eager to see the Colonel, nii-san? You always hurry so much when we have to go to central."_ Ed would look at him pretending he didn't understand the meaning behind those words, or he would rant that the just wanted it to be over as soon as possible….but he could never hide the faint blush on his cheeks, and every time said blush appeared, Al knew better then to push Ed more on the subject…

And now that hey didn't travel together anymore, Al never brought up the subject again…until now that is.

After hanging up the phone, Al went straight for Ed's room, not bothering to knock or to convince Ed to open the door, he transmutated it instead and went in.

Ed had fallen asleep behind his desk, pen still in his hand, head covering his diary partially. His clothes were almost dry now, which made Al wonder just how long Ed had been writing. Gently lifting his brothers arm from his diary, he recognized it as the same kind of diary Ed used to have during their traveling. He would never let him see it, and after Al whined and pleaded for some time, he just gave up. Ed's diary was Ed's diary. Whatever he wrote in there wasn't so important, otherwise he would never keep his younger brother out of it…right?

Al knew that Ed sometimes kept things to himself, small things that he didn't want to bother other people with it. One night, when Ed went to the bathroom, he left his diary on his bed, convinced that Al was not the kind of person that would read it behind his back. Only that night, Al could not stop his curiosity. Despite the fact that Ed could appear from the bathroom any second, he opened the diary at a random page, curious to what was on his brothers mind all the time that made him write so much. He didn't have much time to read it though, because suddenly the phone rang. Before shutting the diary, he only saw one thing out of the ordinary: Roy's name appearing on the same page at least 5 times.

Before Ed could emerge from the bathroom to yell that there were people with no life out there to call him when he was taking a shower, Al took the phone. It was Roy, asking when they would get back to Central for Ed's report, sounding a bit anxious. This surprised Al slightly because they were expected to be back the day after tomorrow, and it was not like Roy to work THIS late. In the meantime, Ed demanded to know what son-of-a-bitch was on the other side of the line and calling them at 11 o'clock in the evening. Al heard Roy chuckle, and he asked to had the phone to Ed. So Al did. Ed only calmed down for a second when he took the phone and realized that he was talking to his boss, before he started yelling again that they would get back Saturday, and that Roy just called him at this hour to annoy him and because he didn't have a life. Throwing the phone into the wall, Ed went to his bed, picked up his diary and despite the fact that he was tired as hell, he started writing like crazy, not stopping till 0.30 in the morning, a faint blush on his covering his cheeks all the time…

Al looked at the part of the page that was not covered by his brothers body, and he saw Roy's name appearing over and over again. Was it him Ed has been writing about all those years? Why?

Suddenly, as clear as daylight, a thought struck Al:

What if Ed was in love with Roy?

But that still left a couple of questions to be solved: Why would Ed leave the military if he had the opportunity to be around Roy so much? Why would he always freak out, even at the times when Roy's concern and kindness towards him were genuine.

And why didn't he tell his younger brother about it?

Al felt hurt about the last part. When the realization struck him that Ed had been head over heels for so long without telling anyone, he felt a bit dizzy, trying to hold onto the wall for support but crashing into the nearby closet instead, waking Ed from his sleep…

Ed looked up, confused that Al managed to get in and that he was no longer writing in his diary…his diary!

Ed jumped up, trying to figure out where it went. Perhaps he could still find it before Al would notice anything weird. He was relieved to find it on the floor were it fell the moment he woke. He wanted to pick it up and pretend that nothing was out of the ordinary, but when he saw the look on Al's face he knew that he was too late: Al already figured out the whole situation, looking at him with a mixture of anger, sadness, relief and confusion.

Ed averted his eyes, picking up his diary from the floor and pulling out the box from under his bed. Al wanted to lecture Ed on his behavior, but he as soon as he saw the huge collection of diary's Ed had collected in the box, he fell silent. Not asking for permission, he took one dated from around the time when Roy found him and Al, exhausted and wounded outside in the rain. Ed did not object, knowing that there was no more reason to…

Al red, tears forming in his eyes when he read how accurately Ed described Roy at that moment, the concern on his face, the soft scolding with an underlying tone of worry, the coat that smelled like him that he put around Ed's shoulders to shelter him from the rain, despite the fact that he became soaked as well. How romantic he was at describing each and every feeling when Roy was concerned, the butterflies inside his stomach when Roy offered him a drink or when he would give him that lazy smile, the happiness when Roy shared a table with him in "their" lunchroom instead of the 3 beautiful military women sitting at the other side. And how incredibly romantic Ed could be when being in love, when fantasizing about the "what if" future he could have with Roy, when writing about the things that reminded him of Roy on their journeys, like a beautiful sunset or the full moon: all the words written there came from the heart

Al looked up, tears streaming down his face. Ed could not look him straight in the face, his face flushed red of embarrassment. With trembling fingers, Al closed the diary, an image of Roy shivering outside in the snow at the borders of Shakei, probably thinking about Ed as much as Ed thinks about him…

"_Nii-san…..what have you done?…"_


	6. Society Demands

**Society Demands**

Standing outside in the snow, gun in his hand and gloves laying on the table inside.

Completely useless…that is what Roy Mustang felt about both his gloves and himself right now. Useless…

How could he ever work in HQ again, commanding soldiers in battle and making them give it all for the good of the country….when he wasn't able to win his own inner battle. Against the sadness…

How could he ever face his men again, knowing that they (now) know about his feelings towards the blond hotheaded alchemist. How could he just go back after he left them? What would Riza say if she could see him now….

Roy kept his gaze fixed on the small path, one of the few way's to enter Ishbal and leave Shakei. And every time he saw someone in the distance nearing his post, he looked up expectantly….before mentally slapping himself.

No, it was not possible.

And even though he told himself that every time, his heart stopped beating when he spotted someone blond…

* * *

Ed was afraid of facing his brother, expecting several things: laughing, nagging, scolding…..but not tears. He heard Al's quiet sobs, the same kind of sobs he made in the past while laying in bed, when he and Ed had been fighting. Ed would always feel sorry afterwards, and crawl in next to Al to comfort him, by means of apologizing.

It was obvious that this time was different…

Al tried to find the right words. Although he cared deeply about his brother, he had no hard feelings towards Roy, and the thought that Ed was responsible for Roy's current state was infuriating to Al. Al dropped the diary, stood up and walked towards the map of the world, hanging at the left wall of the room. Ed's eyes followed his movements, confused….

Al stuck his finger out, pointed at a place on the map, and then looked Ed straight in the face. Ed stared at Al, then at the map and then back to Al again, not knowing what to say….why was he pointing to the Shakei boarders?

"_This is were Roy is right now…."_

Ed's heart stopped beating…..

"_he went there because of you…"_

Realizing the coldness of the place and that Roy hated coldness more than anything, Ed became anxious to why he did this…

Al's voice cracked on the next line

"_this is all your fault…"_

At this, Ed seemed to be more like his former self, because as soon as he heard the accuse he jumped up, shouting _" WHAT?"_

Al wiped away a tear streaming down his face…

"_how the hell can that possibly be MY fault, did I send him up there! WHO THE HELL SEND HIM UP THERE ANYWAY, THEY KNOW HE HATES COLD!"_

"_he went there himself idiot.."_

Al looked at the doorway, confused. Winry stood there, with a peace of paper in her hands. Ed looked at the paper, recognizing it and avoiding Winry's and Al's gaze.

It was a love letter he received about a year ago, unsigned. Not that it was anything abnormal at valentine's day, but he only recently found out who the letter was from. Roy's typewriter had a error at the T, making it look more like an L. It was a small error that you could always find in a letter written by him, an error only Ed noticed the existence of. One day, after receiving a letter about his next mission, he accidentally dropped it and it fell to the ground, getting stuck under his desk. When he tried to grab it, he grabbed another peace of paper as well: it was the love letter, he probably lost it there some time ago. But he instantly noticed what he didn't noticed before: "_To: Edward Elric_"…..the same error in the T…

The next time he went to the office, he tried to pretend that he never received the letter. Before Roy could ask innocently if he received any Valentine cards, Ed asked him outright if someone recently borrowed his typewriter. Roy only blinked at the odd question, but said that he was the only one using it. Before Ed could help himself, he blushed slightly, feeling a wave of emotion rushing through his stomach as he realized that it was Roy who send him a love letter, saying all those things he wanted to hear for so long. He blushed even harder when Roy couldn't help but smile at Ed looking so flustered. Ed just excused himself and went back to work, but not before yelling at Roy that he shouldn't go bragging to his men about his record of receiving over 400 valentine cards. His jealously was almost transparent at that point…

He hid the letter as soon as he was home, thinking about it as a sick joke, but keeping it anyway. How did Winry find it? And how did she know that it was from Roy?….

" _So let me get this straight…."_

So she started, screw in her hands, Al shivering from the icy look in her eyes and Ed looking for a place to take cover…

" _you KNOW that Roy is in love with you…."_

She walked towards him, slowly, holding up the letter like it was a weapon.

" _and YOU are in love with Roy….."_

if looks could kill, Ed would have been reincarnated twice already

" _You turned down the perfect opportunity to tell him how you feel and work things out…"_

Ed backed away, step by step as Winry came closer

_"You just stepped on his heart, left him just like that without caring about neither his nor your feelings…."_

Ed bumped into the wall, now standing completely defenseless, no place left to run.

_" And now he volunteered to be away from everything and anything he knew, and you are sitting here writing about him for hours and crying yourself to sleep………"_

Winry just let the screw fall to the floor and tears started to stream down her face, but she still looked angry

_"Why?……….what brought all of this up? The Edward I knew would have done anything to get what he wanted…."_

"_because….."_

Al and Winry looked up expectantly

"_because that is was society wants…"_

Al and Winry looked at each other, not quite understanding him…

_" I did some research in the library once, and I accidentally found a confidential file on fired soldiers. There were 4 cases in which a couple of male soldiers were fired, because they had a relationship…with each other "_

Al tried to say something, but Winry stopped him, seeing that Ed had more to say.

_" This society doesn't accept people like that…people who are…different.."_

Winry looked down at the floor, knowing what Ed was talking about…she heard the story all too often….

_" People with regular jobs…people who are married and have a family…those are the kind of people that Society demands…"_

Ed swallowed before continuing.

" _What I want is…to be normal. Since the accident, and all that followed, I've been some kind of….of freak wandering around and being looked down upon by other people"_

Ed's voice sounded a bit shaky at the word "freak".

_" I just want to fit in for once…..have a normal job….maybe have family some day. How can I ever succeed in being normal…when I'm in love with another man, when I have to work with that man all the time…when I'm flustered beyond comprehension by a man…"_

**THUD!**

Before Ed realized what happened, a second screw Winry kept hidden behind her back hit him in the head. He slumped to the ground, holding his head and rubbing it against the pain.

"_YOU IDIOT!"_

Ed looked up, trying to argue with that , but found that he could not, given his current state.

Winry just pointed to his arm and leg…his automail

_" You have an automail arm and leg, you have a father that is over 400 years old, you passed the state alchemist exam at the age of 12, you've been to the other side of the gate and have a half brother that looks like palm tree……NOW TELL ME, WHAT PART OF THAT IS NORMAL!_

She stopped her ranting to catch her breath, but then continued:

"_YOU Edward Elric, are NOT NORMAL and you will NEVER BE! YOU SHOULD BE GLAD YOU'RE UNIQUE! WHY DO YOU WANT TO "FIT IN"NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN! JUST GO ON WITH BEING UNIQUE AND GO TO ROY!"_

Panting, Winry glared at Ed, waiting for an answer…

Ed seemed to think about her words, seeing the sense they made…

Al stepped forwards before Winry began ranting again

"_Nii-san…..you love Roy right? Didn't mom always tell us to follow your heart in order to be happy? That's how she married dad…"_

Ed laughed at this, but it was a hollow laugh

"_and then she died Al, I wouldn't call that happiness…"_

"_ But she had been very happy for a long time. Isn't it better to be happy for some time, that to always regret not taking the final step? You wrote it down yourself….all those possible future's you and Roy can have together…."_

Ed flushed red at this

"Ed….if you love Roy, than go to him" 

Winry seemed to have calmed down

_"If your mom had the chance to redo her live, she would have married your father again, I'm sure of that….because it resulted not only in the happiest years of her life, but also in you and Al…."_

Ed looked up, seeing the earnest in her eyes

_"Are you afraid that you will end up the same way your mom did? But Ed….Who knows what beautiful things the future has for you and Roy, even if it is short lived……wouldn't you at least want to know instead of only guessing what might have been?"_

Some moments of silence followed. Ed looked at the envelope on the ground that contained his promotion letter. Roy did so much for him, and he loved that bastard. He could at least talk to Roy and bring him back to Central, were he belonged….and, Ed had to admit it, were he belonged as well…desk to desk with the Flame alchemist.

Ed stood up, walked past Winry and Al, grabbing his travel bag, and he gave his brother and Winry a final look over his shoulder….

"_I'll bring Christmas presents when I get back, 'kay?"_

_tbc._


	7. Just wait for me

**Just wait for me.**

_Okay, so first: sorry for not updating so long: ( ARRHH TOMORROW GRAMMAR EXAM! KYAA! I'M GONNA DIE)_

_I really wanted to share that with you people._

_Second: next update will be somewhere around next week, I promise!_

_( get's a note handed by crew) oh yeah, and some of you people own me cookies…_

_uhrr...that would be it, enjoy!_

* * *

He left….

Reluctantly, still confused and unsure of what he was about to do

But, at least…he left….

Winry and Al saw him off as he started walking towards the train station, slowly…

But with every step he took, he walked faster and faster, till he was practically running. Although he dreaded what was up ahead of him: facing what he had done to Roy because of his own selfish actions, he looked forward to seeing him again…

Even the thought at hearing another "shorty insult" being throwed to his head made Ed feel a thousand butterflies in his stomach, and it made him run even harder.

* * *

Riza sat by the phone with a mug of coffee ( which is rare for her) in her hand, listening to the entire story from Al, relief written all over her face. So Ed was head over heels for Roy as well, but was scared to be different once again and probably get fired…and Roy as well. That made sense to her. Even though the whole " fitting-in" part sounded a bit unlike Ed, she could image him wanting to be normal for once.

Hughes could only look at the facial expressions of Riza when she talked with Al. First it was concern when she answered the phone, then surprise, then obvious relief… It wouldn't be long before they would talk things out. While talking, she motioned Hughes to leave for the train station. Not complaining about being send away, Hughes grabbed his coat and went for Central Station, to meet Ed before he would take the next Train to Koshika, the last City at the boarders of Shakei.

Because once again, the Fullmetal Alchemist just ran off without having a clue where to look or were to go, or so Hughes thought, grinning. Oh well, being in love is a good excuse for acting impulsive. Hughes only hoped that Roy would be able to forgive Ed for what he did. Although Hughes knew that his best friend was head of heels for the blond alchemist, Ed hurt him like no-one had ever hurt him before. Hughes could only hope that Roy wouldn't go play his usually "bastard"-self around Ed and pay him back by sending him away. Roy was not known to be so insensitive or stupid, but love and hate can do strange things to people…

* * *

Ed, upon arriving at Central, had about half an hour before the train that would take him to Roy would depart. Normally he wouldn't have minded waiting a bit, but now he felt incredibly impatient. Once he decided to face Roy and finally have the talk he secretly long wanted to have, he found himself unable to just sit still. The train ride to Central was hell. Well, mostly for his fellow travelers: since Ed didn't own a watch anymore, he constantly asked all the people around him for the time, shifting in his seat the whole ride and sighing every minute. Half a day ahead of him, and he would be there.

Ed couldn't decide yet how he would start the conversation. Just saying "_hey, I was in the neighborhood_" wouldn't do it, and since he technically didn't work for the military anymore, he couldn't use his usual "_here-is -the-damn-report-you-asked-for_" excuse.

Ed took a deep breath…something he did more and more when thinking about Roy.

This was not going to be easy. Roy would probably make either fun of him for coming up all the way into the mountains just to say that he's falling in love with him, or he would still be pissed and just shut him out. Either way, Ed didn't knew which one would be worse…

But he longed to see Roy none the less...

Buying some sandwiches and walking down the station while eating them, Ed thought of the reason why Roy never said anything about his feelings. Sure he noticed that he could actually be nice sometimes, but Ed thought he just did that to make him accept another boring mission or to make him do some other stupid stuff like cleaning his office. When they'd been in a fight with someone or delayed because of an accident, Roy would somehow always find and call them, even in the middle of the night, just to know if they were OK. Al always said how nice it was of the Colonel to be so worried about them all the time. Ed thought that was ridiculous, saying that he just did that to make fun of them because they failed, and to annoy them because he had nothing else to do. But as soon as the Colonel hung up, ed would grab his diary and start writing, fantasizing that the Colonel DID call out of worry…worry for Ed.

Ed could make up book-size stories over the feelings the Colonel had in his fantasy, that he called out of concern, that the Colonel was just pretending to be bored at work but that he was actually daydreaming about Ed , that he the reason why he called Ed so much was because he just wanted to hear his voice, …

All the times the Colonel called for them were written in his diary, and Ed remembered every word of their conversation and wrote it down, just so he could fantasize about the meaning of those words coming from his imaginary Colonel, the one that loved him. Not the one that made fun of him, annoyed him and called him in the middle of the night…..

But Ed still preferred the annoying one over the fantasy one…

While finishing his last sandwich, Ed thought about all the hours he spend fantasizing about Roy being in love with him, but making sure that Al would never find out about it. He obviously failed. Al had been right all the time about his feelings. Then again, Al was right about 9 out of 10 times. As much as Ed hated to admit it, Al was more of an expert when it came to feelings than he was, and Al spend year as a suit of armor!. Ed chuckled to himself while thinking about him being lectured on the principle of "love" by a suit of armor. That would have been a funny thing to see…

Though he was glad that Al was now human once again…

He was so caught up in his thought that he didn't saw the Elicia-photo freak approaching him. Before Ed realized what was happening, he received a slap on the shoulder while someone yelled in his ear.

Hughes could be heard by anyone in a direct range of 500 meters.

"_Yo Ed! Daydreaming about your lover ne? You naughty boy!"_

Ed's face just flushed red of embarrassment while he tried to hit Hughes in the head . Hughes just laughed and dodged ed's fists ( both the metal and the "real"one) with practiced ease: when being angry like this, Ed had little control on what he was doing, and everyone who worked with him in the past years was used to it now.

As soon as Ed calmed down and wanted to ask just what the fuck Hughes meant by those words, Hughes handed him a paper. Ed recognized it as a map of the Shakei boarders, with a small red spot somewhere along the line of cabins…

Roy's cabin?….

_(eye twitch)_

Just when Ed wanted to kick Hughes's ass for pointing Roy's cabin out with a cute tiny red heart with an arrow through it and R&E written by it, he noticed he was hitting thin air. The bastard had fled. Ed folded the paper and put it in his pocket, deciding that leaving for this train as soon as possible was probably the best thing, because now he had the attention of most of the bystanders because of his tantrum. Flushing red, Ed made for his train, not seeing Hughes looking from a save distance, and something in his hand that looked like a camera….

Slowly, the train started moving. Ed noticed he was all tensed up, knowing that he would reach Roy's cabin by nightfall. He would soon stand before him, not knowing whether he would be accepted or rejected, being let in or being shut out, staying as a friend or parting as an enemy. It was now all up to Roy to decide that. Ed knew ,though, that he was the first one to reject Roy, although he did not know that Roy was actually making a move. Somewhere in the "logics" part of his brain, Ed realized that it would be perfectly fair if Roy would reject him now. Just settle to the score…..

But that was of course not what Ed's heart hoped. He hoped that…..that Roy would find another way to "make things up"…….

In the distance, the eerie mountains of Shakei became visible, and even though he was still far away, Ed shivered at the sight.

_Just wait for me Roy……one way or another, I'm gonna get you away from there…_or so ed thought

_Just wait for me…_

_Roy…._


	8. Don't ignore me

**Don't ignore me...**

It was late in the afternoon when Ed arrived in Koshika. Stretching his limbs that became a bit stiff from the long journey, he grabbed his bag and stood up. He was a bit shocked when he stepped outside, at seeing the number of soldiers and the ruined buildings. Men in uniform were standing at each corner of the city, all of them armed. Ed was asked for his ID a couple of times, since his blonde hair made it obvious that he wasn't a local. At first, Ed just wanted to shove his pocket watch under the annoying officer's nose and smirk at him making apologies for offending a state alchemist, but then he realized once more that he didn't have it with him anymore. So reluctantly, he pulled out his ID and stood waiting impatiently for some time until the soldiers were convinced that the document was real and let him pass.

Sitting on a park bench, Ed took another look at the paper Hughes had given him, making a mental note to paint the bastard's car pink one day upon seeing the little red hearts pointing out Roy's cabin. According to the map, it was only a few miles by foot, but it was a dangerous road and it would take some time climbing. Ed sighed. He knew it was late and that he could get lost in the dark, but he didn't want to wait for the next day to come. Upon seeing the kind of place Roy ended up in, he felt even more guilty about his own selfish actions. The people here looked frightened somehow, most of them were poor and probably smugglers. There was a lot of crime in this part of the country, and the larger part of the city was destroyed by civil wars. They also suffered from invasions of small groups of bandits from the other side of the mountain who came her to steel food. That has to be the reason why they have so many guards at the boarders, or so Ed thought. Well, one thing's for sure. Roy doesn't belong there.

Speaking of said alchemist, Ed knew that the time for confrontation was near, and so he stood up from the bench and grabbed his bag. He started walking down the road that led him out of the city, into the eerie mountains of shakei.. "might as well use the time to come up with a good excuse" Ed said to himself.

Ed used to suck at making excuses for things. Partially because in his youth his mother would always find out and scold him for it, lecturing him on the importance of being honest. That, and Ed was just not good at lying.

But as soon as he discovered why he felt so uneasy and tingly around Roy, he had little choice but to make up excuses: for avoiding his routine visits to his office at times that Roy's other subordinates were also present, for returning to central early, for all the times he couldn't help but blush at a kind comment from Roy, for turning down an offer to join Roy at his table in "their" lunchroom ( because he was afraid his mask might slip), for leaving the house at the exact same time Roy would take a walk in the afternoon each day….oh yeah, if his mother could see him now. Edward Elric : the master of excuses.

They didn't work all the time of course.

One day when Ed decided to lunch early, that is: before Roy would come in, he almost blew it. That day, the place was filled with tourist that traveled in an organized tour. Apparently, whoever organized said tour decided that they would lunch here. So after buying a sandwich, a diet coke and a bowl of tomato soup, Ed had a hard time finding a tourist-free table. While avoiding all the bags and coats that were practically scattered all over the floor, he tried his best not so trip and spill his soup. Despite his soft cursing, the people that caused the mess in "his' lunchroom ignored him.

He hated tourists. Okay so, he had been a tourist on some occasions, using the opportunity of being in a new city for clues on the philosophers stone to just take a look around, enjoy the local cuisine, visit some museums… but at least he didn't LOOK like a tourist. You could recognize the kind of tourist in Ed's lunchroom from 10 miles away: cap, flashy t-shirt, camera, sunglasses, holding a map of the city upside down while making pictures of everything in sight….

Ed made a mental note to make Al shoot him if he ever became that kind of a tourist.

Finally spotting a free table in the corner of the lunchroom, Ed sat down with a sigh. He spilled some of his tomato soup because of those annoying people and it landed on top of his sandwich. Ed carefully took a bite from his tomato soup-sandwich…deciding he didn't mind, he ate half of it before starting with his soup. It was cooled a bit, but that was only good for Ed, since he could eat it a lot faster now. 12 o'clock was approaching fast, and he had to get out of there before…

_"Seems like you conquered the last tourist-free table….mind if I join you?"_

Ed recognized the rich tenor of Roy's voice without even looking up, nearly chocking out of surprise, and his face flushing red for more than just the lack of air in his lungs. While coughing, he just nodded and avoided the Colonel's gaze, his mind became a turmoil of thoughts: what was he doing here so early, how did he find him all the way back here…and how could he fluster him beyond even his own comprehension with just a single sentence?.

Roy sat down across from him, and Ed nearly jumped out of his seat when their knees touched under the table. Trying to compose himself and daring to look up, his gaze first crossed Roy's plate. Ed looked surprised at the reflection of his own choice of lunch from this day: a sandwich, a diet coke and a bowl of tomato soup. How did he…. Roy ignored his questioning look and picked up his spoon to start with his soup, but then he saw Ed's half-eaten sandwich, still partially covered in tomato-soup. Ed saw him looking at it and he cursed inwardly, preparing himself for the Colonel's teasing at him for spilling his soup and ruining his sandwich. He would probably blame his height for it…..again.

But that was not what Roy had in mind….

Before Ed could ask what Roy was doing, Roy picked up his own bowl of tomato soup and "spilled" some of it over his sandwich, ignoring Ed's mouth that was now open wide enough to catch flies. Now most of Roy's sandwich was, just like Ed's, covered in the red ,steamy liquid.

"_since this seems to be the trend here…..can't stay behind now can I?"_

A teasing smile accompanied those words, his onyx eyes were fixed on his, and Ed found himself unable to say anything, the lump in his throat getting bigger due to the look Roy was giving him, and Roy's foot "accidentally" touching his didn't help Ed calm down either. He felt the urgent need to get out of there, at once. An excuse, yes, he needed an excuse. And excuse to just leave as soon as possible.

_" I err…I still have a lot of paperwork left"_

Ed was already attempting to stand up, but Roy grabbed his hand gently and stilled him

_" You delivered the last report this morning to the front desk, I asked them"_

It was rare for Roy to be able to counterattack Ed's excuses. So this was a challenge….

_" But Al is also waiting for me, we were supposed to go shopping"_

Did Ed imagine things or was Roy's thumb softly rubbing his palm?

_" He is inhishotelroom reading a book, and he said yesterday that the two of you didn't plan anything for today"_

Now Ed became nervous. So Roy already found an answer to his most frequent used excuses. Why he did that was not as important as getting out of this situations a.s.a.p. Perhaps time to try some rare ones, or so he decided.

"_ Well, maybe he forgot about Winry's birthday next week and we still don't know what to buy so.."_

Ed tried to pull away, but Roy didn't let go.

_" Fullmetal, your brother is more responsible than you, he wouldn't forget something like that."_

Ed started to panic. Roy still had a gentle but firm grip on his hand and looked him straight in the eye. What was he trying to do? Make Ed apologize for lying? Make a fool out of him for knowing all the answers to his excuses? Normally, Ed would come up with a thousand more excuses…good ones, he knew that from experience. Ones that Roy would never have an answer to. But the direct contact from flesh to flesh, since neither of them was wearing gloves, made him feel light headed and tingly. Roy's dark orbs fixed on his amber one's made Ed swallow hard before replying.

_" Either way, I have….I have business some place else. I have to go"_

And with that, he janked his hand free from Roy's grasp and he grabbed his coat. He was about to turn around and leave, when Roy's following words made him stop in his tracks…

_" I know you have business……anyplace but where I am, isn't it?"_

Ed looked at him, and he was shocked at seeing the look Roy gave him. Was that….pain? He couldn't remember a day Roy looked like this before.

_" Why do you avoid me? If this is about that underwear prank that Hughes pulled a couple of weeks ago…."_

Ed was suddenly back to normal when he remembered that particular event, in which Hughes stole Ed's underwear for whatever means, and that ( while being chased by Ed trying to get his boxers back) he ran past Roy who didn't even try to stop him. He even laughed."

But Ed also realized that now, Roy had given him the excuse he was looking for:

" _YOU COULD HAVE AT LEAST SCOLDED HIM FOR STEALING MY_ _BOXERS!"_

several people turned to look where the sudden noise was coming from. Ed didn't notice at first. He just stared at Roy to see what he would do next. Would he apologize? Would he just laugh and make fun of him like he usually did? Either way, Ed wasn't planning on staying there any longer if this silence between them continued much longer.

Ed returned a few curious glanced coming from the tourists with his patented death glare, and it seemed to convince the last people to back off. Most people lost their interest in staring at the odd couple already, and continued eating their own lunch. Ed released the breath he didn't realized he was holding. He should stop with drawing all the attention to him all the time.

Roy decided at that moment that he had enough, wiping his mouth and deserting his half-eaten sandwich, he grabbed Ed by the hand and before the blond alchemist realized what was happening, he was standing outside in the ally next to the lunchroom, back against the wall and facing his superior officer.

Ed closed his eyes with a sigh. How did he end up in a situation like this? He was in for a boring lecture on "proper behavior of men in uniform" again, and probably also some stuff on "not yelling to someone of the same sex about underwear in a crowded lunchroom". Okay, so that wasn't an official military rule, but now that Ed thought about it, he decided it should be. Perhaps it was a good thing Roy dragged him out here.

_" I'm sorry Ed…."_

Ed opened his eyes at being called "ed" and not "fullmetal", and also because he was not expecting an apology. Why should Roy apologize? He was the one that yelled in the lunchroom, and if Hughes had stolen Roy's boxers, Ed would have probably laughed as well.

Roy was looking him straight in the face now. His eyes filled with a lot of emotions, but his voice firm.

" _If I did something to piss you off then I'm sorry. I just don't want you to ignore me like you did the past 3 weeks. You know that I don't like to be ignored."_

Ed was trying hard to fight back the tears forming in his eyes. He was avoiding Roy because he KNEW that sooner or later Roy would find out about his feelings, and that could be disastrous. Things were perfect as they were now: Ed had the opportunity to see Roy every day, but from a distance. Okay, so he sometimes had to spend some time in his office, but that would only give him more stuff to write and fantasize about. Ed, upon realizing that he was in love with Roy, believed from the start that things could never work out between them. So avoiding talking directly to Roy was only out of self-defense: he didn't want stay longer than necessary, because then…..then it would be ever harder to leave.

But now that he learned that he hurt Roy by making him think that he ignored him, Ed decided that he should put his own feelings aside.

" _I'm the one that should apologize. I know that I've been avoiding your office lately, but…."_

Quick ! think of an excuse!

_" It's just that…you treat me differently when we're with the other guys from HQ. You don't even scold them for making fun of me, even when they do that in front of you"_

Ed knew that he didn't really mind. He was used to people making fun of him, and he himself discovered some sensitive issues of his colleagues already so he could get back at them. While thinking of that, Ed remembered that he still had photo's from Havoc's last, disastrous date. He couldn't wait to show them to Hughes and the rest.

_" I'll think about it from now on, if that is what it takes to make you visit A22 more often than…well…..once in three weeks."_

The moment Roy said that, their gazes met. Roy smiled warmly at him, and Ed couldn't help but smile too. Roy put an arm on his shoulder and for a moment it looked like he was going to hug Ed , and Ed stiffened at the thought. If he did that, Ed knew he would not be able to let go. Could this be it?

Luckily for him, Roy abandoned the plan as soon as it occurred to him, and just motioned for Ed to follow him out of the ally.

_"okay, then I…. I'll see you tomorrow I guess…."_

" _tomorrow…..and don't be late"_

Ed snorted at this

"_late? I'll leave that to you! You've already been late 4 times this week! "_

"_ I'm your superior officer, and due to more pressing matters, I sometimes tend to be late_" 

"_whooo, I'd like to see what Hawkeye things about that when she hears this"_

_" no, don't'! she'll make me do all the paperwork from my division on my own!"_

_"that'll serve you right! You always make us do it!"_

And so they walked off, arguing like usually but smiling at each other for their newfound understanding for one another. Ed decided to make sure he would visit Roy when expected….and to be in "their" lunchroom at 12 o'clock every day. And Roy decided that the first one to make fun of Ed in his office could do his share of paperwork that day. Or else he should borrow Hawkeye's gun. Smiling to himself, Roy already looked forward to tomorrow.

* * *

Ed reached the small path that led him into the nearest mountain were Roy was stationed now. Though the sun had set already, he took a deep breath, cracked his knuckles and then set the first step on the road towards the place Roy, according to Ed, shouldn't be right now. 

If he only took the time to take a look at the sky above him, were dark could were gathering, the promise of a very stormy night to come.

tbc.

**Easternspirit:** MUWHAHAHAHA! some of you must have had visions of inpending doom when you saw the title. No sweat, just a flashback. The real action is about to come, but i must warn the sensitive readers ( cough perverts cough ) that there is some steamy stuff up ahead, hence the rating. WHOO! ROY X ED FOR THE WIN!

oh, and i really like the reviews, so GIMME MORE!


	9. Facing the cold

Okay, first of all: I PASSED MY EXAMS! YAY!

**Readers**: so what, you could have written more in the meantime…..CUZ YOU FINISHED THE LAST ONE THREE WEEK AGO!

**Easternspirit:** _( sweatdrop_) yeah….but I was sick and stuff…..oh by the way, thanx for all the reviews and everyone should see the video made by syao9 on "society demands". Just go to w x 3. youtube and dot com.search for "society demands'. I COMMAND ALL OF YOU TO GO SEE IT, OR ELSE!…..hmm, I might just leave this story unfinished….gotta love an authors power…..

So finally here it is, the next episode…will Ed come out of the storm alive?

Enjoy

….

By the way, the lemon stuff is postponed till next episode….

**Readers:** WTF?

Now just a minute 'cuz I have to run for my life

**Easternspirit**; AARRRRRGGHH! DON'T HATE ME!

**Society of Anonymous Perverts**: COME BACK YOU!

**Readers**:……………………..

* * *

If Ed only realized what Roy had been through the past hour….

* * *

While pouring himself a cup of coffee, Roy was vaguely listening to today's whether forecast. Snow, just as expected. It had been snowing every evening here since he arrived, so this wasn't much of a surprise to him. He just hoped that nobody would be stupid enough to try to cross the boarders at night, since most of the smugglers ended up dead because of the slippery roads and the landslides. But since most of them had a starving family were they couldn't come back to empty handed, they would try non the less….. 

At least he could stay inside at night. Roy sighed as he snapped his fingers to get a fire going, and despite it's heat, slightly shivering when looking outside the window. The moment he did that was accompanied by the whether forecast lady saying something about "a blizzard" and "staying inside". _"well, not like I was going out for a late evening walk_" Roy murmured to himself as he sat down in a chair by the fire, wondering how things were back in Central at this moment……and in Risembool.

But just when he was dozing off as he always used to do at work, the phone rang. Roy ignored it at first, probably some lame warning that he should go out patrolling to save the scum that was trying to pass the boarders anyway. But whoever was on the other side of the line seemed to be very determined ( or as Ed would put it: "out there to get him"), not hanging up for 3 minutes straight. Finally, Roy, deciding that he wasn't going to get any sleep soon anyway, was fed up and picked up the phone

" _Mustang here"_

" _ROY! What took you so long to answer the phone!"_

unmistakable….. hawkeye's voice.

" _I erhmmm….."_ what would Ed say in a situation like this? Roy found himself smiling at the mere thought of Ed and his endless excuses.

_" never mind, is Ed there! He didn't check in to one of the Hotels so he should be there by now…."_

Roy fell silent for a moment. What was she talking about? What was Ed doing in Koshika, and even if he was here, why would he visit him? His anger began to build up.

" _Roy, are you still there?"_

"_ Yes, ehm…..what's all this nonsense about Ed being here. I thought he went back to Risembool?"_

a moment of utter silence on the other side of the line.

_" so…he's not there with you either………."_

Roy was getting annoyed over the whole conversation. Did she had to rub this in? Sure, he would have LOVED to have Ed here with him, but that would never happen.

" Hawkeye, if this is some kind of sick joke then I might just hang up the pho…."

" _NO! this isn't! listen to me! Ed went to Koshika to see you but is not in one of the hotels, so than means he's on his way to you right now to…_

Roy barely heard the phone hitting the floor as he felt like all the air was sucked out of him. He was simply unable to breathe at the thought that Ed, the one and only person he would want to be save no matter what, was outside in that terrible blizzard. The panic and sudden fear was so overwhelming that Roy felt paralyzed for a brief moment.

"_Roy? Are you still there? Roy Mustang!"_

Roy ignored the phone laying on the ground and grabbed his coat and a rope. The only thing Riza could hear on the phone was the howling of the wind and moments later a door slamming shut. Hughes could see from the look on her face that Ed was probably in deep trouble and Roy was, once again, risking his life to get him out of it.

All they could do now was pray….

* * *

Ed was drifting somewhere between consciousness and a dream world, one that didn't involve a sudden snowstorm and his leg aching so much. 

It happened all so suddenly.

The whether was perfectly fine at first, but he noticed the dark clouds above his head too late. He was simply too focused on finding the cabin. Every time a corner became visible, he would run towards it, hoping to find the cabin behind it, only to be disappointed when there was even more road to take.When he was a little bit more than halfway across, Ed suddenly felt something cold on his nose. A tiny snowflake. That didn't bother him though. What bothered him more were all the other snowflakes that were following their little brother….or sister.

Ed quickly ended his silly thoughts as soon as he looked up to see if more was coming. He could only stare at the almost black clouds above him, starting to release their icy containment on him. This coupled with the sudden rush of wind that made him shiver and almost caused him to lose his balance made Ed realize that he was in a lot of trouble. Not that it was unusual to him….but this time he was completely and utterly alone….an no Colonel to back him up. The wind became heavier and the blond Alchemist struggled to keep going against the cold that seemed to freeze him to the bone. Ed looked around frantically to find shelter: a cave of some kind could save him….

* * *

Roy cursed the whether: why did the worst blizzard in 10 years had to hit this place on the same day Ed was going to visit him. He had to struggle to keep going, the snow that fell on the ground continuously now almost reaching his knees. He almost reached the point were the path that came from down under the edge of the plateau his cabin was on became visible. Telling himself over and over again that Ed would probably be there somewhere and that he would find him in no-time was the only thing that kept Roy from losing it as he imagined all sorts of horrible things. 

Then it happened.

Suddenly, the sky lit near the edge of the plateau and a loud crack could be heard. Roy instinctively ducked to the ground and put his arms over his head for cover, an old habit from back at the battlefield. The noise of the avalanche that followed the impact of the lightening into hard rock was overpowering the eerie noise of the wind that only seemed to strengthen by the minute. But Roy's hart almost stopped beating as he thought to…no, was CERTAIN that...he heard a scream from down below….right before the rocks came down onto the path.

Struggling to get up and finally reaching the edge of the plateau, Roy didn't dare to look down at first. He was expecting the most horrible sight any friend ( or lover for that matter) could ever have to face: Ed being pushed of the path by the avalanche by those rocks and fallen into the depths down below, Ed being crushed by said rocks and no longer alive….Roy had seen cases like that all too often, but never to someone he loved so much….

A fast wind that was suddenly coming up from below hit Roy in the face and cleared his head of the horrible images that were racing through his head. But it brought him something as well: Roy felt that a soft ring-like thing with a piece of metal hit his head. As he grabbed the thing that fell off his face the moment the wind stopped, he realized that it was a hair tie. Ed's hair tie. How did that come up here?

Daring to take a peek over the edge, he instantly saw Ed's blond locks that were being played with by the wind, now almost looking like a flag to get someone's attention. Roy decided in that moment that blond was definitely the most beautiful hair color in the world. Ed himself seemed to have escaped from the avalanche…..except for his right foot. Roy could only stare down and feel a tear escape his eye as he realized, when Ed thought he saw someone above him and started yelling, that the blond alchemist was alive….

* * *

Roy threw some more wood into the fire place. It was important to warm the other alchemist up as soon as possible. Roy had a very hard time getting down to Ed, who was only barely conscious by then, free his leg and get him up and to the cabin. Both of them were soaked to the bone and Ed's automail made him heavier than most teens his age. Roy didn't care about all this, he was only focused on reaching the cabin. Once there, they would be save. 

The moment he slammed the door behind him shut, he dropped his luggage and their wet coats and before he knew what he was doing, he pulled Ed close to him, a few tears streaming down his face as he realized from Ed's shivering and wounded leg that things could have turned out a lot worse. Just being able to hold him for the first time in his life, to finally express the immense relief he always felt after Ed escaped from some kind of dangerous situation, was overwhelming to the flame alchemist.

Ed felt something warm. Under normal circumstances that would have been, well….normal. But since he felt nothing but cold for what seemed like an eternity, he was so surprised that he opened his eyes to see if he wasn't dreaming. He could only vaguely make out some wooden walls and a kind pair of eyes fixed upon his, his vision still too blurry to make out details. Tired, Ed closed his eyes again, deciding that whoever it was that was holding him had taken him somewhere save and wanted to help him, and Ed unconsciously held onto Roy's sweater, burying his head in his neck. Roy couldn't help but smile at this as he moved Ed to the fireplace so he could warm a bit.

A bed, yes, he needed some place to lay down near the fire. Roy gently lay Ed on the ground near the fire place, and then rushed around in the cabin to find all the blankets and pillows he could find. He even ripped them of his own bed and also found another mattress. Sometimes he needed to help people in distress on the mountainside so the house was well stocked with emergency supplies like extra blankets, almost more than Roy could carry….

Ed was confused and started to toss around a bit: were did the warmth go? He felt something else beside him that was even warmer, but somehow he knew that he should not try to snuggle up to it. The footsteps that left him a few moments before were returning, and Ed felt someone picking him up again, just enough to gently lay him down on something very soft. Wait, how was he able to feel with almost his entire body that it was so soft? He was being covered in the blankets, but Ed struggled to find his clothes. Did he went to bed without his pyama's again? Mom would scold him, because he always catched a cold when he slept in just his boxers. Except when it was summer, but he was cold before so that was impossible…..

Roy, finally satisfied that Ed was warming up in something that looked more like a nest of blankets and pillows that a bed, sat down near him and, for some time, softly stroked the boy's cheeks with his fingers. Wondering to himself if he could still call Ed a boy since he would be 20 in a few months, he felt his body warm the more he thought about what happened the past hour. Ed had come to visit him, and while he had the opportunity to go back and find shelter in Koshika, he went on. Still, Roy wondered why he came to see him. Perhaps he just felt guilty when he heard about Roy ending up here and wanting to apologies. But that still meant that Ed thought about Roy as a good friend, but if that was the case, why did he say that he left because of him?…

A soft groan from the nest made Roy pay attention to his object of affection again, measuring Ed's temperature by laying a hand on his forehead. Sighing, Roy realized that Ed had a fever, something expected after being outside in the cold for so long. But beside that, and the scratches on his right leg, he had no serious injury. What bothered Roy more was that Ed was still shivering. Perhaps, due to his illness and exhaustion, he wasn't able to generate enough body heat to warm his cold skin on his own. At this thought, Roy undressed ( except for his boxers of course) and threw his own wet clothes near Ed's. Then he made some room in the nest near Ed and carefully crawled in beside him, covering the both of them with a blanket and pulling Ed close and wrapping his arms around the shivering blonde. Perhaps Ed would be ashamed and mad at him if he discovered it later, but at this moment Roy knew it to be the best for him.

Something warm on his left. Yes, not only on the right, but there was something warm on the left side of him as well now. He felt 2 arms around him and sighed at the feeling of warm skin. The familiar scent, the one from the sweater he was holding a few moments before, was returning, and Ed snuggles close to that scent, coming in full body contact with a smooth-skinned chest, savoring it's warmth. He wanted to open his eyes and see what was going on, but the events of the day were taking it's toll. The last thing he felt was someone softly nuzzling his cheek before he fell asleep.

tbc.

review! OR ELSE NO PERVERTED STUFF!


	10. Breaking the Ice

**Breaking the ice **

**Easternspirit**: AAAHHHH GOMEN NASAI!

**Readers:** ….what did you do THIS time?

**Easternspirit:** weeeelll….I REALLY wanted to put in a lemon this time, but as one of you pointed out in your reviews: "don't rush it'…..and I was in a really REALLY " fluffy-cuddling-happy" mood and they had to figure stuff out and things, and I already wrote more in one chapter than I would normally do and I updated it so quickly so you won't even notice that…..

**Readers**: notice WHAT?…..

**Easternspiri**t:….that I have to postphone the lemon stuff again ( till saturday or something)….. ( _takes cover)_

**Society of Anonymous Perverts: **NANI!

**Easternspirit:** DON'T HATE ME, I AT LEAST MADE THEM KISS ALRIGHT!

**Society of Anonymous Perverts**: JUST WAIT TILL WE GET OUR PERVERTED HANDS ON YOU!

* * *

A small ray of light fell into the room, as if the sun was peeking through the window to see how the two alchemist inside the cabin made it through the night. Said ray of light happened to fall on Ed's face of all places, it's warmth and brightness slowly waking the blonde… 

Ed yawned and blinked a few times, wondering if he forgot to shut the curtains again, like he sometimes did when he was too tired to move the night before. Oh well, I'll just turn around and sleep some more, or so he thought. However, when he tried to do so, he found he could not…because a strong pair of arms wrapped around his shoulder and middle were preventing him. This coupled with the sudden realization that his "pillow" had a heartbeat and that he felt at least 3 human legs in his bed made Ed realize that he was not alone…

The first thing that came to his mind was that Al crept into his bed once again, as he always did at night when the thunder outside scared him too much to sleep alone. But that was years ago, and , as much as Ed hated to admit it, the person laying next to him was taller…taller than Al, and also taller than him.

Then Ed remembered a group mission when Hughes crawled in Ed's bed in order to wake him ( this coupled with Havoc who stood beside the bed ready with his camcorder). It's common knowledge that people who realize that they're not alone in bed when they wake usually freak out or jump out of bed without a second thought. Ed transmutated Hughes new car as an answer to "testing" said theory, and he was in a very bad mood the rest of the day….but it worked.

Speaking of said reacting to strangers in your bed, Ed wondered why he didn't jump out of bed the minute he realized that his pillow was a bit hairyand that he had his hand on a rear that wasn't his own. Ed felt rather proud of himself for not acting like a sissy or an idiot, like whoever pulled this prank was probably expecting. Just when the blonde was starting to thinking of ways for revenge, he noticed the soft and even breathing of his "pillow", meaning that his bedmate was probably asleep.

This didn't make sense to Ed, since he assumed that someone was pulling a prank on him. Why would that person fall asleep just when the "victim" woke up? Or was it acting?As he tried to figure this out, the light that blinded Ed and which made him unable to see exactly where he was ,was gone because of some clouds that blocked the sun. Ed blinked a few times to regain his normal vision, and when he opened them again he decided he should blink again: because as soon as he opened them and saw Roy's coat and gloves on the ground near him and the wooden walls of a mountain cabin, he instantly knew what smelled so familiar here. During his reasoning as to why someone was lying in his bed, he never once questioned his whereabouts. He remembered the events of yesterday and figured that there was only one person up there to help him and only once place he could be right now: he realized that he was in the mountain cabin he was heading for and that he was using Roy as a pillow…

This realization, coupled with at least a billion butterflies that entered his stomach all at once upon fully realizing that he was practically on top of Roy with the the both of them being half naked, was enough input to make the Fullmetal Alchemist jump out of bed in an instant, forcing himself from Roy's arms and waking the other alchemist in the process…..

So the situation was like this: Ed, standing in his boxers, staring with rather huge eyes at a side of Roy he'd never seen before, and said Roy who was looking rather confused and sleepy, sitting up in the nest, also in just his boxers.

At first, Roy only remembered being woken rather harshly, just when he was having the first good dream he had in days. But as soon as he noticed the emtpyness beside him, he jumped up as well. He was planning on waking before Ed so he could explain things, because if Ed would wake first he would probably run off again like he usually did. And that would be disastrous for more reasons: he was probably still not feeling well……

" _don't worry, I'm not going anywhere"_

Roy's gaze met Ed's and as if on cue, both of them released the breath they didn't knew they were holding, recovering a bit from the sudden surprise. Ed felt feverish, tingly even. He also had trouble standing because his knees seemed to be made of jelly all of a sudden.

He wasn't so sure if his temperature was to blame for that though.

" _thanks for rescuing me by the way….i guess I needed some help getting up here."_

Roy felt the overwhelming urge to hold Ed again like he did the day before, to have him rest a bit more, but now , he knew, it was time for the talk they had been avoiding way too long. Noticing Ed's returning shivering and his reddened nose, he walked away to a dresser, silently motioning Ed to sit. The blonde followed his movements throughout the room, mentally slapping himself when he caught himself staring at Roy's rear. He had been wondering plenty of times if the rumors from some female co-workers were true about his sixpack and his ass when he was in Roy's office. Ed's opinion on how rumors were always blown-out-of-proportion-facts was definitely changed after having seen Roy Mustang in his boxers.

Almost hoping that Ed would admire his body, Roy took his time to walk to the dresser. There he retrieved 2 bathrobes and handed one to Ed, who took it without daring to look up, afraid that his gaze might drift to Roy's "southern region".

After making some coffee and toast, the both of them sat down, knees touching under the table, and neither of them knowing what to say. They sat like that for a while, sipping their coffee and eating some toast without a word being exchanged.

Roy dared to meet Ed's gaze now and then, only to have him blush even more. He didn't want to push Ed into talking, he knew it would only make Ed shut him out even more. Roy was dying to know for what reason he came here, hoping with all his heart that…..no, he couldn't allow himself to have that much hope. Sipping some coffee to tryto calm his nerves, he knew better than hoping that things would turn out perfectly fine. Ed was known for doing most things on impulse so he might have already forgotten why he came here in the first place.

Ed felt light-headed every time Roy's onyx eyes met his gaze. He didn't want to start the conversation. When he left Risembool after Winry's and Al's lecture, he was so determined to get Roy back to Central, to confess his feelings… But now that he was sitting across from him again, knowing that he just spend a night in his arms and knowing that Roy was deeply in love with him but unaware of his feelings, Ed didn't knew were to begin.

But since he already finished his coffee, he decided to go first. Stupid reason or not, he had to do this, since the tension was eating away at him. At both of them.

" _I …."_

Roy looked up immediately, abandoning the toast he seemed to be so occupied with moments before.

_" I wanted t..to……"_

Ed was still looking for the strength to look Roy in the eyes.

" _..bring you back…to Central,... because…"_

Roy felt his heart sink at those words. He brought his coffeemug to his lips once more, trying to hide his dissapointment. So….he came here because he felt guilty. No matter how much Roy hated to admit it, he would feel the same way if he hurt someone like Ed did to him too. Ed was probably told that he was to blame for their boss to end up on a cold mountain and he came here just to bring him back.

The blondedared to look up when he was not getting any response, and upon seeing the disappointment on Roy's face he knew that he probably misinterpreted his words. Wanting to take away the doubt between them, he struggled to find the right words that would say what he had been feeling for so long….

" _because….who else is going to drive me nuts with useless reports and "shorty" remarks ?"_

Roy looked up with a rather blank expression, not quite knowing how to take these words…

" _who else will take care of the mess I will make in the future when doing stupid stuff again?"_

Roy then decided that whatever Ed was telling him didn't have anything to do with him feeling guilty.

Ed felt he was getting thought toRoy, andfound the confidence to continue:

" _who else is going to soak his sandwich in tomato soup together with me?"_

Roy began smiling at the memory of that particular day at "their" lunchroom, feeling his hart warm at the thought that Ed remembered it as a special day as well…

" …_.with whom am I supposed to work…..if you're not there?"_

The older alchemistthought he didn't quite catch the last one. "work with"….did that mean that Ed would accept the promotion after all? Did he really change his decision? Would they still work together?

Roy was so excited and overjoyed at the thought that he wanted nothing more than to ask Ed out straight if this wasn't some kind of joke, but Ed had one more line for him:

"…_who am I supposed to think and write, and...fantasize about when you're not there?"_

And to answer Roy's confused expression and silence since he totally forgot what he wanted to ask, Ed stood up and walked to his bag, retrieving one of his more recent diaries, and hesitantly giving it to Roy. He just took it, confused about the meaning of Ed's words and the book, and Edjust satdown and stared at the tablecloth, dreading what was up ahead.

Roy flipped through a few pages, convincing himself that it was a diary of some kind, before he began reading at a day Ed titled "society demands". And then red some more, for the first time in years completely understanding what exactly was going through the mind of his beloved blonde alchemist.

He felt tears welling up in his eyes when he red about Ed's fear of society and not fitting in while being head over heels for "Roy Mustang", all those words written about him and the times they spend together, and all the love and overwhelming feelings coming directly from the hart. Roy felt like his own feelings were written down there, but there was no way that he could ever give themsuch an artisticform as skilled as Ed could. Knowing enough, he carefully shut the book with trembling hands, deciding that it was now up to him to take the final step.

Ed was waiting for the storm to come. He expected nothing more than Roy reacting angry and hurt at learning that he was dumped for no good reason, that he suffered for nothing and that there could have been something between them already. This sounded more like the Roy he knew, for Ed was well aware that no-one could hurt Roy Mustang and get away with it. Bracing himself for the impact, Ed refused to look up when Roy stood up and walked to his chair…

**Easternspirit: **….perhaps I should have you guys wait here till next ti….

**Readers:** YOU CONTINUE OR ELSE WE RELEASE THE PERVERTS!

**Easternspirit**:….just a suggestion….geez

5 seconds

that was all it took for Roy to lift Ed up from his chair, wrap his arms around him and gently press his lips up to Ed's. Ed only gasped at the contact, but welcomed it from the beginning.He let Roy take charge of the kiss, expecting him to show him how it worked since it was his first. Roy gently sucked onthe blonde'slower lip, and enjoyed giving Ed his first kiss, deciding that no matter how many women he kissed before, this one would be the best of them all.

Ed proved himself to be a good student, as he was in most things. When the both of them needed air, Roy pulled back softly and cupped Ed's face in his hand, gently making him meet his gaze.

" _no more misunderstandings….."_

Ed felt the older alchemist's hands leave his face before he pressed a soft kiss to his check, and moments later, he found himself in an embrace, Roy gently caressing his back.

_" Fear of what Society demands from the both of us has kept us apart too long…"_

while listening to Roy, the blond Alchemist closed his eyes and enjoyed the vibrations of Roy's deep voice that went throughout his body.

_" I learned last night what I fear the most……"_

Now that he thought of it, Ed could barely remember what happened the night before, except that one moment in which he opened his eyes for a brief second, and saw a kind pair of eyes fixed upon him…..eyes filled with tears of worry

_" I should have known longer that losing you is what I fear the most….whether that is by an accident or you leaving the military….."_

Roy held Ed even tighter at the memory of what he thought to be Ed's last day in A22.

_" And right now…..I just….I want to hold you, I've wanted to do that for so long….only that way I know that you're not running off again to some kind of dangerous situation…._

Ed thought back at the time that he came back from the other side of the gate. When he saw Roy again, he wanted nothing more than to have his arms around him and hold him near, the urge so overwhelming that he had to force his gaze away, or else...

He could well understand the feeling…

_".only that way I know you're save…"_

As soon as Roy finished the last line, he felt the body pressed against his chest moving, and when he looked down, he found himself looking at the younger alchemist, who had

……. a huge grin plastered on his face?.

_"AND you want to hold me just cuz you want to ne? Hughes was right when he said that you're a pervert…. "_

( _eyetwitch )_

It took some time before Roy made the switch from very emo to rather "normal", but as soon as he had his patented smirk on his face again, Ed felt a huge wave of relief spreading though his body. Oh yeah, they were back again…..

_" Of course I want to, and because I assume that you're staying in the military, I can just ORDER you to hug me if I want to Fullmetal!"_

Ed took this as a challenge and dashed to the other side of the room.

_"You have to catch me first old man! "_

Roy suddenly felt like a teenager again, running after Ed and trying to put a serious look on his face, but obviously failing. He could almost hear the tension between them shatter like glass.

_" Fullmetal, I COMMAND you to hug me! Do you want to be court-martialed!"_

Just before they reached the door, Ed made a sharp turn on his heels and was suddenly facing Roy

_"Oh really, well in that case…"_

Before Roy knew what was going on, he found himself flat out on his back in the nest of pillows and blankets that still covered the floor near the fireplace, and speaking of covered: The Mustangizer found himself covered from head to toe with the blond alchemist, his arms wrapped around his waist and his head laying on his chest, laughing out loud at Roy's surprise of being knocked down so easily.

Roy couldn't help but laugh as well, his body shaking as he was overcome with a sense of relief and happiness he could not ever remember feeling.

So what they acted like some 10 year olds…

For them...

It was all it took to break the ice….


	11. melting the snow

Okay, here is the edited version of "melting the snow".

Thus they stayed like that for a while, each enjoying the closeness of the other. Ed listened quitly to Roy's heartbeat while the older alchemist nuzzled against a few loose strands of blond hair, remembering it's scent for life. His other hand was wrapped around the blonde's waist, holding him tight against his body, something that felt very reassuring to Ed who was so at ease that he felt like he could fall asleep on the spot.

Roy smiled at hearing Ed's content sigh, as the older alchemist was softly rubbing the blonde's back. Roy's only regret was that they could have been like this a lot sooner, perhaps even before Ed disappeared to the other side of the gate.

But, he also decided, they had a lot on their mind at that time. Ed wanting to restore Al to his original body, and Roy of course had his duties….

Speaking of which……

Roy softly coaxed Ed to sit up, earning him what could best be described as a disappointed groan, muffled due to Ed having burying his head in Roy's chest, refusing to let go.

"_how could your childish side ever have annoyed me?_" or so Roy thought to himself.

_"As much as I would love to cuddle with you all day, I have to call central…..you should probably make a phone call to your brother as well you know"_

Now understanding what Roy wanted, Ed let go of him and stood up. Sure this wouldn't be the last time they would cuddle like this, right? And if things were up to Ed, they would be doing a lot more than just cuddle. Smiling at his own rather perverted thoughts, Ed imagined his brother walking in on him and Roy being in various stages of undressing …. Roy would be in for trouble no doubt..

But as much as Al could be a nuisance sometimes when it came to his big brothers love life ( cuz in his eyes, no-one was good enough), Ed knew that he had to call him that he was okay.

_" yeah, I know, those guys…..they must be pretty worried about us ne?"_

Roy nodded at this. Since neither their friends at the military or their friends and family in Risembool knew what happened after Roy dashed out into the snowstorm to save Ed, they should have called them a lot sooner. And even if they heared that the both of them were save know, they should also let them know that things finally worked out between them.

They were okay now….more than okay even.

Sitting down in his chair next to the phone, Roy grabbed Ed by the waistband of his boxers and pulled until he landed in Roy's lap, while Ed pretended to object. That didn't work well since the blonde alchemist enjoyed Roy's possessiveness from the beginning, instinctively snuggling closer to Roy when the older alchemist wrapped his arms around his waist.

With Ed holding the phone and Roy dialing the number, they would make a couple of people back at Central and Risembool have a peaceful night of sleep again.

" _Soooooo, did you guys do IT already? If I know Roy, I bet you did Ed, you should be carefull when being around that horny bastard! Come to think of it, did you bring condoms up in the mountains Roy? You were probably hoping for some cute Shakei girls to pass by didn't you? Ne? See Ed? I told you he's a pervert! Speaking about perverted stuff, I have a very interesting story about him from our highschool ti…"_

Let's just say that Roy had a hard time not slamming the phone into the wall, and Ed was just lost for words, wondering how in the world Roy and Hughes EVER became friends. Luckily for them, Riza just entered the office, looking rather angry upon seeing Hughes sitting on her desk and annoying Roy once again: a few gunshots and some yelling was heard before Hawkeye took the phone.

" I'm sorry for that sir, I just left to get some coffee so he was the only one here to answer the phone"

_" That doesn't really sound like you at all Hawkeye, coffee I mean."_

_"Erh….yes, forgive me sir, but I didn't get any sleep last night after you ended the phone conversation so suddenly, and since everyone here drinks it to get rid of headaches…."_

_"no need to apologise"_

_" You should watch out with that stuff you know, you'll end up like the caffeine-addicted bastard I'm sitting on right now_…"

Riza smiled of relief when the words "sitting on right now" finally got through to her.

_" Ed! I only drink 5 cups a day…"_

" _make that 5 GALLONS a day…"_

"_don't be ridiculous"_

" _oh come on, did you see the size of your mug back at central? I don't understand how you never confused it with your bathtub before!"_

" _I don't even HAVE a bathtub!"_

" _Ieuw!"_

Not bothering to interrupt them, Riza just sat down comfortabally and completely ignored her coffee. She just listened, amuzed by their usual "bitchfighting", but at least this time, they would kiss and make up afterwards…..or so she hoped.

" _okay, so perhaps I took 6 cups yesterday, but that was because…"_

" _you can't survive not even one day without your precious caffeine can you" _

" _I could do with just 2 if I wanted!"_

" _your not addicted if you can go THE WHOLE DAY without coffee!"_

" _I'm NOT addicted!"_

_" you're addicted, admit it!"_

" _Hawkeye, help me out here will you!" _

"_I hate to admit it sir, but you are addicted if you ask me, I can remember days you had at least 7 cups a day"_

" _SEE! You're an addict! Thanx Riz..."_

"…"_Riz"…….?"_

" _I'm not addicted to coffee damn it!_

" _Just admit Roy, that's all it takes!" _

" _Why don't you just admit sir, I think that's the only way to shut him up"_

" _okay, so maybe I am addicted…"_

" _Woohoo! You hear that Riza, he admits tha.."  
_

" _I'm addicted to YOU…." _

"_uhr………."_

Now with Ed being speechless for a second and Roy taking the opportunity to shut the blonde up in a more fun way ( which could be heard loud and clear on the other side of the line), Riza decided to discreetly hang up the phone and let them have their " fun". She could only smile at the thought that everything would be okay.

However, there was one other task ahead of her: getting someone to switch with Roy. She doubted that he wanted to stay up there the whole year, and beside that: he was needed at HQ.

" _nii-san, I'm so happy for you! I told you it would work out!"_

" _ehrr….yeah, but you know you sometimes have to push me into doing emo stuff like this….."_

" _when are you guys coming back?.."_

Ed glanced at Roy, who was listening as well. He just shrugged and Ed smiled, knowing what he meant by that….neither of them could really care at the moment.

_" We don't know yet, but I don't think I'll be back by evening if that's what you mean. Sorry that I have to miss Christmas Al…."_

" _It's okay nii-san, you finally being happy with someone is a Christmas present to me. And you're not alone right?t I know you have good company to keep you…uhr…. Occupied"_

" _What is that supposed to mean?" _But Ed grinned when saying this, knowing well what his little brother was thinking.

" _nothing, ….nii-san?"_

"…_yes?"_

"_can I speak to Roy for a second?"_

" _sure Al…"_

Handing the phone to Roy who gave him a questioning look, Ed could already see what was coming. Sliding off Roy's lap, he pretended to be doing something in the kitchen while Roy received the ( to Ed) expected lecture on how he should not do anything perverted to his brother and that if Roy would break his nii-sans hart like he did to so many women, Al would be glad to break something else on Roy's part. Ed had to stifle a laugh at seeing Roy look like a schoolboy being scolded by the teacher, his face paling a bit.

The most suprising thing to Roy was how Al could say all these things while still sounding so innocent and childish. It was almost freaky….

Returning from the kitchen with 2 cups of tea, Ed took the phone from Roy without asking and made an end to Al's lecture by just asking how Winry was doing. She had been waiting at Al's side, anxious to hear what happened and as soon as she heared her name on the other side of the line, she pushed Al aside and withing 5 seconds, Ed was listening to the bubbly blonde herself.

She was so excited over Ed finally having a boyfriend, babbling continuously about all the things they could now do together, but when she began fantazising out loud about a double marriage, Ed had to stifle a laugh when he heard Al faint in the background. Marriage….wasn't that a step too far at this point? But Ed couldn't help blushing when he looked at Roy ( the one and only person who could look sexy even in a pinkish bathrobe and messy hair, while muttering something about tea being tasteless trash) and the thought about a real relationship that was up ahead from them.

At least, as far as Ed was concerned, it was serious.

And judging from the fact that Roy drank the tea Ed made for him without adding 7 spoons of sugar and without complaining, Roy was serious as well….

Roy looked up and felt his hart melt at the warm, faraway look Ed was giving him. The blonde alchemist realized a little too late that he was caught staring and decided that the wall at the other side of the room suddenly looked very interesting, blushing madly. He quickly ended the phone conversation after making Winry promise not to talk about marriage so suddenly in Al's presence.

_" what was all that talk about marriage? Are they setting us up?"_

Was Ed mistaken, or did Roy almost sound hopeful?

_"No…it's nothing, Winry just blurted out that she would love a double wedding, that's all….I don't think that Al was prepared for that kind of talk though…."_

_" and what about you then?….."_

Ed looked up to find Roy giving him the most drop-dead sexy look Ed had ever seen….it made the blonde shiver from head to toe…

" _m..marriage?….I I don't….I mean…I want…one day..b but…"_

Roy chuckled at Ed's confusion and motioned for the younger alchemist to come nearer. As soon as he was within reach he grabbed his arm and made Ed sit on his lap (again) and held him close, softly rubbing his back till he felt Ed sigh and relax under his touch….then he continued.

_" I was only kidding about the marriage part, but what do you think about a serious relationship? I don't want to push you Ed, but now that I have you I'm not planning on letting you go….ever….."_

Ed sat up to meet Roy's gaze.

" _so …..I don't really have a choice, I will be stuck with you whether I want to or not? "_

Roy almost thought that Ed was serious, but then he felt wet lips against his own and the only thing left to do was close his eyes and check Ed on his improved kissing skills.

"_coffee?…"_

" _yes, as long as it doesn't come along with coffee-addiction-joke cookies"_

With a huge "victory" grin on his face, Ed went to the kitchen, trying to dry his hair a bit more with a towel while he was at it. He and Roy spend the entire day outside, melting the snow around the cabin that was over a meter high/ They had trouble getting outside in the first place, and the whether forecast said that more snow was coming, so if they didn't want to wait till spring to get out, they just had to get rid of the snow.

But Roy discovered that with Ed, even the most boring things could be turned into some kind of game: Ed's favorite way of getting rid of the snow around the cabin's door was a snowball fight, and Roy was his favorite ( and only) target. Before they realized it they spend the entire morning and afternoon making snow sculptures, snow angels, playing hide and seek….all of this couples with snowball fights and a lot of flirting, "accidentally" ending up on top of one another and a few stolen kisses. It was the first time in their life that , both Ed and Roy, felt like a teenager..….

Roy couldn't remember a day he spend doing so many silly things….not even in his own childhood. Probably because he didn't have a brother like Al or a neighbor friend like Winry, whom he could play with. Sure, he was the best of his class and did read a lot of books, but now he began to understand exactly what he missed in his young years, the years he grew up without children of his own age.

A mug of damping coffee right under his nose snapped Roy out of his thoughts. He took a sip while he watched Ed who tried to drink his coffee and dry his hair at the same time, annoyed when he almost tripped over the ( too) large pants he borrowed from Roy .It looked rather funny to the older alchemist, so he just took another sip and watched the unfolding " drama" with amusement.

Roy , after taking a sip of the first cup of coffee Ed ever made for him, found himself smiling when he noticed that Ed already memorized exactly how he likes his coffee best: extra strong, 2 spoons of sugar and a few drops of milk, not stirred. Just a small thing, but it meant a lot to Roy, who had been complaining about his coffee every time Havoc or Breda came back with coffee that was either black, not strong enough, contained too much milk or sugar…..and they already worked under Roy's command for years!.

In the meantime, Ed decided that the towel was evil since a fiber of it got stuck in his hair. He looked like he was ready to transmutate his arm and teach the damn piece of cotton a lesson it would not soon forget, but then he felt a pair of hands working on the knot in his hair, and after a while, Ed felt the towel slip from his head, falling to the ground, defeated.

_" thanks for that……."_

The hands that ended "the war of the towel" didn't leave him though. Gently grabbing his shoulders, Roy coaxed Ed into leaning back, wanting him close again. Knowing immideatly what Roy wanted, Ed came in contact with Roy's chest, sighing when Roy put his arms around him and pulled him even closer, snapping his fingers to get a fire going.

Roy absently played with a few strands of Ed's golden hair while he placed light, soft kisses on his throat and shoulders, carefully watching Ed's reactions to see if there was any sign of uneasiness. The mood was so perfect to go to the next level, and Roy would have done so already if he was with one of his many female dates, but he hesitated. Maybe it was his imagination, or perhaps he was hoping too much, but Roy felt a kind of sexual tension between them all day like he never felt before, but he didn't knew if Ed felt the same…

But Ed only tilted back his head, exposing his throat to give Roy better access, so for now, that meant a definite yes to Roy…..

Ed loved the feeling of Roy showering his throat and shoulders with soft kisses, that gradually turned into small nips and bites. He wasn't sure if it was just him, but today he could almost taste the electricity in the air between them, it was a kind of powerful attraction to the older alchemist that Ed could not explain in words. Especially at the few times they were playing hide and seek in the forest and landed on top of each other. Of course, Roy would use the opportunity give him a slow and loving kiss, but when he stood up Ed felt disappointed.

And now, in this romantic setting and with Roy testing how far Ed allowed him to go, Ed was determined to not give any sign that might spoil the moment, for the last thing he wanted was for Roy to stop now.

Perhaps the older alchemist thought that Ed didn't want to do any…as Al would put it…"perverted stuff" so soon. But this was one of the few points in which the blonde was absolutely certain that he wanted it. Though he might still be a bit childish at times ( okay, most of the time), his body already reached maturity and even the hotheaded and alchemy-obsessed Edward Elric had to face the hormones. Not that he minded though, said hormones caused him to finally grow faster, till he was (almost) at the same height as his Colonel. This didn't keep others from calling him short though….

But those same hormones made Ed finally aware of his sexual preferences, and when he had his first wet dream at night, he wasn't thinking of Winry like he expected…..He woke in the morning, realizing with a mixture of horror and confusion that he had been having a very erotic dream about going all the way with Roy Mustang.

And it wasn't the last time he had that dream. And so, the fantasizing began….

Roy, encouraged by Ed's soft moan when he brushed with his hand past his left nipple, started to massage his chest and abdomen, not stopping caressing his throat, face and shoulders with his lips. He felt a slight shiver run through the younger alchemist's body every time he touched him, and the fact that Ed started to breathe more uneven and ragged with the second should have been a green light for the Mustangizer to go on…..why did he still hesitate?

Feeling his nipples ( among other things) harden at the flame alchemist's touch, Ed decided that now it was up to him to take things to the next level. Roy was obviously waiting for a more direct signal from his side that it was okay to continue…

Carefully, he slid from Roy's embrace and rolled onto his back beside him, waiting for Roy to react. The older alchemist must have thought that he did something wrong when Ed moved away from him, and Roy ( already thinking of an apology) turned to meet the blonde's gaze to see if he was scared or unsure, just the way he himself had been at his first time.

Ed only smiled at him as he held out his hands.

_" I'm a bit cold…..will you be my blanket? "_

As innocent as it may sound on paper, Roy never expected Ed to say something so seductive and yet sweet. Feeling all doubt disappear like the snow he melted outside with his flames, he didn't need a second invitation, and within seconds Ed found himself covered with Roy's body while the flame alchemist showered his neck and chest with nips and gentle bites.

After a few minutes though, Roy slowly headed southwards while massaging the blonde's two fully hardened nipples. Ed could barely keep himself from groaning out loud, but he couldn't stop his breathing becoming more erratic and a gasp when Roy put his tongue in his belly button. Ed tossed his head back and groaned as he became impatient. He wanted nothing more than to grab Roy's head and place it straight where he wanted it to be….

Concluding that if Ed didn't want all of this he would have pulled away already, Roy finally reached his destination: Ed's boxers, or rather: the containment of said boxers. Ed felt his blood rush faster through his veins as Roy placed his head completely between the blonde's legs and started to hum against the growing bulge in between, blowing hot air and nuzzling against it, Roy enjoyed listening to Ed's moans of pleasure. He always wondered what the hotheaded alchemist would sound like in the bedroom, but he never expected his moans to be so incredibly stimulating, exciting Roy by mere sounds more than he thought possible.

But, as he already decided for himself, Ed first…..he could wait.

He carefully grabbed the waistband of Ed's shorts with his teeth, dragging it down further and further, exposing the blonde's arousal. The blonde responded by groaning even more as he lifted his hips a bit so Roy could take off his boxers completely. The older alchemist threw them away, completely focused on the banquet of virgin flesh before his eyes. Speaking of virgin, Roy almost felt like he was the virgin here. Since he had never been with another man before, he was fairly inexperienced himself. But at second thought, Roy knew exactly how he likes to be pleasured and that couldn't be so different when pleasuring another man.

Ed arched his back and moaned rather loud as Roy finally took him in his mouth, stilling the blonde's hips that started to thrust almost automatically, acting completely on instinct. He slowly sucked him, swirling his tongue around the head while using one of his hands to massage the blonde alchemist's balls gently. Ed's increasing moaning and gasping excited and encouraged Roy , and while Ed was getting closer and closer to his peak, the flame alchemist became anxious for stimulation himself.

Feeling thick waves of pleasure race through his system, Ed felt like every fiber in his body was on fire, screaming for more. But when he noticed Roy's other hand leaving his hips, he looked up to see what he was doing. As soon as he realized that Roy's hand disappeared in his own boxers to stimulate himself, Ed felt a bit guilty for letting Roy do all the work. And besides that, Ed longed for more intimacy, he longed to have Roy inside him and come with him together. It was the same scenario he had been dreaming about for years, and even though Ed realized that it was going to be painful for him and even though it was his first time…..

He wanted it so much, so very much….and it could hardly be more painful than having his limbs torn of his body or fighting the homonunculus, or so Ed decided…

Roy was surprised when Ed motioned for him to stop, not quit understanding what he did wrong. His completely swollen cock and his screams were more than enough proof that Ed wouldn't last much longer if he continued this way, why would he stop now?

Ed grabbed Roy by the back of his head and brought him to his lips, wanting another kiss and Roy on top of him again. Roy followed, welcoming the blonde's tongue swirling around his own of course, but still wondering what the teen was up to. He didn't have to wait long, because he soon felt Ed's hand tugging at his pants, wanting to take them off. This coupled with Ed's other hand slipping inside his boxers and grabbing his hardened cock made Roy remember Ed's life motto: toka kokkan, equivalent trade.

As soon as the flame alchemist tossed his pants in the same corner were he tossed Ed's he thrust his hips to Ed's and came in full flesh-to-flesh contact with the blonde's own groin. This earned him another loud moan from Ed, as he started to thrust back immediately, yearning for more. The blond never questioned his body when he automatically started to move his hips or when he invited Roy to take him, for the first time fully understanding that resistance against his feelings for Roy were futile from the start. This, what they shared now, was the oldest act in the world, and no society in the world could decided whom he should share it with.

The friction coupled with their thrusting and them being wildly aroused already could have been enough to bring the two lovers to their peeks already, but that was not what Ed had in mind. Looking from the corner of his eye, he grabbed the nearest thing that could be used for what he desperately wanted, and handed it to Roy, who looked up with a mixture of surprise, uncertainty and unveiled lust at what had been used sandwiches just hours before….

Butter…..

Only one look exchanged between them was enough to confirm Roy that it was safe to go all the way. He found that, unlike most of his previous experiences, no words were necessary to let each other know what they wanted and how they liked it. Perhaps it was because both of them were men or perhaps because they were so aroused that they didn't want to waste any time speaking….but whatever it was made Roy decide that he would never sleep with anyone other than Ed again….

It wasn't long before Ed felt a slippery finger enter him from below. And then a second, and a third. And God did it feel good,…. it felt so good to be intimate with Roy, to have the dream he had been having for years come true, that Ed was completely blind to the pain Roy caused upon entering him. And it only became better when he slowly started to thrust.

_" Nnnhhh…Roy! F..faster! "_

Ed grabbed Roy by the hips and helped him build a rhythm that worked for the both of them. Ed's moans of encouragement only grew louder as Roy lost all fear of hurting the blonde upon seeing and hearing how much he wanted this. He started to thrust faster and faster, with longer strokes and trying out different angles, knowing that there was a special place somewhere inside the depths of the blonde's body that would bring him to his peek instantly, that would satisfy him completely, and Roy was determined to find it. But he had to find it fast, since his own need was also spiraling out of control, the warmth and tightness around his cock almost more than he could handle and Ed's encouraging moans made holding back even harder. " _Just a bit more, Ed, I'm searching…"_ or so Roy though to himself. It couldn't be long before…..

Suddenly, Ed's entire body seemed to stiffen as he arched his back and screamed Roy's name as he came hard, the friction of his cock trapped between his body and Roy's abdomen , and Roy rubbing against something special inside him pushing him over the edge. Roy followed just seconds after him, Ed's sounds of rapture being the final thing he needed. And despite all his previous experiences, Roy immediately knew that this was the best time of them all.

The first thought that came to his mind when he was relaxed enough to think straight again was:

_" Great Ed….you just spoiled women for me…"_

Roy felt proud to be gay.


	12. Is the worst yet to come?

**Easternspirit: **GAAAH jezus this is WAY too short...

**SoAP**: we agree...

**Easternspirit:** buuuuut it's better than nothing ne? Sorry that you guys had to wait so long. I volunteered for a mentor-program at my university this year, so i will be guiding the freshmen and well...help them with homework and stuff. But i had to do some sort of training ( which was totally boring), and i still have to arrange things for my "propedeuse", i don't know what to call it in English, but it's a sort of diploma you get after passing all the tests on basic Japanese.

anyway, i wrote a short interlude that serves as an introduction to further chapters...

I love happy endings...but the road to that happy ending is long for the two lovers...

**Is the worst yet to come? ( interlude)**

As soon as his eye caught the thing on the couch, Roy smiled. He was surprised at Ed's forgetfulness, something which was not like the blond at all. Should he tell him now or wait till he found out himself?

" _oh well, he's been in the shower long enough I suppose…."_ Roy mumbled to himself, curious as to how the blonde would respond.

Directing his head to the bathroom door, he raised his voice as he said:

_" uhr, Ed….i think you left something over there. And I don't; think that I want to bring it to you, soooo….."_

First 10 seconds of silence…

..than something that sounded like a squeak of surprise…..

… and after that, Roy was greeted with the familiarity of Ed's sailor's mouth…..

"_where did he learn to curse like that anyway?.."_ Roy thought while folding another pyama, before he carefully put it in bag. Only then he notice that he just folded the pyama Ed borrowed from him the night before, and despite that it was an old one and way too big for Ed…to Roy, the younger alchemist looked so damn sexy in it…

Before Roy knew what he was doing, he buried his head in the gray piece of cotton, inhaling the blonde's scent that seemed to multiply the butterflies in his stomach by the second. Absently stroking the soft fabric, Roy recalled the events from the day before, his eyes softening as he remembered their first night of passion near the fireplace. He could only describe it as his most erotic experience yet, even though it was just his first time with Ed. With their passion being this intense already, what more was ahead of them? The Mustangizer was already looking forward to the next evening, puzzled over his own impatience. He usually never slept more than once with his dates, and the one rare girlfriend from his past didn't make it more than twice to his bedroom…..but with Ed, he could hardly wait to have the blond naked and aroused in his arms again…

As if on cue, Ed left the shower and made for the couch straight away, leaving a trail of water behind him…….not only was he soaking wet, he was also stark naked. Muttering under his breath and avoiding Roy's teasing smile ( and lust-filled eyes), he grabbed the towel he forgot and, while pretending not to care but blushing madly none the less, he quickly made his way back to the shower and slammed the door shut behind him. Roy listened to Ed's muttering about perverted old geezers with amusement, wondering if the blond left the towel at the couch on purpose, so he could……

no, that wasn't like Ed at all….

But Roy wasn't one to complain. _"Just wait till we have some privacy again….."_

He would have to wait for that though, since they would be leaving for Central soon….

The phone in their cabin rang early in the morning, but it only woke the fullmetal alchemist. The first ring woke the blonde immediately, and while he was carefully freeing himself from his lover's grasp, Ed wondered how Roy could sleep through the loud ringing of the phone. Perhaps there was a sense of truth to his much-used excuse of "sleeping through the alarm of his clock". Finally freed from the older alchemist's arms, Ed made for the phone, yawning and groaning as he realized with the first step how sore he was. Picking up the phone while looking at Roy to make sure he was still asleep, Ed was greeted with a familiar voice...

_" th….."_

_"RIIIISE AND SHIIIINE Edo-kun, yes I know it's early, but If you and your loverboy want to be back by evening you should really start packing now, unless you were already packing of course, in that case pretend like I didn't call, even though that can be hard if I just woke you guys of course. You sound pretty sleepy Edo-kun, you must have had a long night ne? Oh, judging from your silence I think you were doing a LOT MORE than just packing, oh yes you won't have to explain THAT to me, I know what Roy is capable of.. I think I really should have a talk with Mr. Hormones about sleeping with innocent boy's on their fir…"_

Ed didn't even get the chance to respond to Hughes blabbering, because once again Riza Hawkeye and her beloved gun came to the rescue. He could hear the battle for "lord of the telephone" on the other side of the line loud and clear….

"_Oh come on Hawkeye, you KNOW that someone has to talk to Colonel Casanova, I mean, you know how he was back in Amestris High and now he's corrupting our innocent Edo-chan the same way he did with….."_

_"Stop acting like you're Dr. Phil and hand me that phone! The LAST thing they need is a lecture from a guy who forces others to worship his daughter!"_

"_Aaaaawwww but she's so CUUUUUTTEEE! I mean, just LOOK at this picture! Isn't she the sweetest thing you've ever seen! _hearts go flying_ "_

" _If you don't hand me the phone NOW I won't give you the day off when it's her birthday next month…."_

" _WHAT!"_

Ed secretly wondered how Riza knew that it was Elizia's birthday next month. Little did he knew that Hughes spread the news already over the military's intercom a few day's before…

" _you heard me!"_

"_You can't do that, can you really do that to this sweet innocent face?_ holding up picture "

_" I'LL MAKE YOU DO A DOUBLE SHIFT! " " Riiiizaaa! You're so MEEEEAAAAN!"_

Grabbing gun _" Now give me that phone, or you won't be on any of her birthday's EVER AGAIN!"_

_" NO! here it is! It's Edo-kun by the way, I think his beloved bastard is still asleep, so perhaps you can offer him some mental support on losing his virgi….."_

Suddenly a pair of warm arms wrapped around the blonde's waist and a soft kiss was pressed on his check, obviously coming from someone who haven't shaved his face for three days, but Ed welcomed it none the less. Gently biting the younger alchemist's earlobe and softly sucking on it for a while was enough to distract the blonde so Roy could take over the phone, just when Hughes finished his line and Riza took over…

_" I suggest you make him do that double shift now Hawkeye…….."_

_"sir?…."_

Did Ed imagine things, or could he just HEAR Hughes's face pale?

_" Yes, and in case he's trying to prevent me from "corrupting" Ed…..he's a little bit too late I'm afraid"_

_"….I see…"_

Ed blushed, surprised on how easy it was for Roy to just announce to his friends that he had been sleeping with his younger male colleague…..but then again, neither of them regretted doing it, so there was no point in making a secret out of it…right?

" _Sir, the reason why I wanted to call is that I found replacement….."_

Ed and Roy looked at each other, both of them sharing the same thought:

we're going back….

_" I found a lieutenant who's wife died a couple of months ago, and he needs some time alone to think…"_

To Society……

" _He should be on his way to Koshika right now…"_

To the military…..

_" …so I suggest you go pack your belongings and leave for Central, because…well….you're missed here sir. Edward too of course.."_

Together….

Just a couple of doors away from A22, two rather suspiciously looking men sat at a table, headphones on and listening to the entire phone conversation. The first was about 35 year old, had light brown hair and a vertical scar that crossed his entire face. The second was older, about 40, his hair turning gray and deep wrinkles already showing on his forehead, the result of years of deep thought and worry.

Both of them were smoking while they listened, first annoyed by their colleague Hughes's blabbering and then grinning as they heard Hawkeye's response. But as soon as their former superior officer came on the line, they grew serious, placing both hands on their headphones as if trying to make them merge with their own ears, not wanting to miss a single word….

"…_.he's trying to prevent me from "corrupting" Ed…..he's a little bit too late I'm afraid"_

An evil smirk appeared on both their faces at the same time. The youngest pushed the button of the recorder, ending the recording of Roy's confession.

They finally had what they needed.

Retrieving the tape from the recorder and looking at it like it was the gold of Atlantis, the older one mumbled to himself…

_" Finally…_

_..you're going down Mustang…."_

_TBC._


	13. Ghosts from the Past part 1

**Easternspirit: **WHOOHOOO FINISHED A CHAPTER…….yes that is something to be proud of with a schedule like mine…..

And thanks to the SoAP, I WILL FAIL MY QUIZ ON JAPANESE UKIYO-E PAINTINGS FROM THE EDO-PERIOD TOMORROW!…there, happy now? I hope you feel guilty, you perverts….

**Society of Anonymous Perverts**: actually….we don't , you should have updated much sooner…

**Easternspirit**: yeah sure…..anyway, I discovered that this story is FAR FROM OVER….cuz I suddenly had inspiration for a whole new plot. The next chapters ( I believe about 3) will describe exactly what Roy did to make enemy's in the military….you know, the 2 guys I wrote about last episode. It will also tell something about what Roy was like before he met Ed…

Anyway, I hope you won't he angry if I don't update so often….but I will finish this story no matter what!…

……..

**Ghosts from the past.**

Standing in the doorway of A22, Roy inhaled the scent of brand new furniture and freshly painted walls that greeted him like it was an expensive cologne. Slowly walking towards his new desk, as if he wanted to remember every step, Roy Mustang still didn't dare to believe that he wasn't dreaming. This office, painted in his favorite shade of blue, this brand-new desk, made out of oak and of very good quality for military furniture, the colleagues he befriended on the battlefield, standing near his desk and saluting their new boss, but most of all: his new name-tag standing on his desk:

Colonel R. Mustang.

Yes, it was the real deal. Sitting down in his chair and motioning for the others to sit as well, he took a deep breath as he tried to relax himself a bit. How did former Colonel Forrer do this? Being so relaxed that he could just order everyone around while reading a magazine or sipping his coffee….or didn't he care about what people thought of him?

The silence in the room became too awkward, so Roy decided that it was time for his first speech as a Colonel. He cleared his throat to get everybody's attention….

" _I know….that this is rather awkward….being bossed around by someone younger I mean…"_

Farman and Havoc exchanged looks, but didn't say anything. They just smirked, admiring that their new Colonel already knew exactly what they were thinking….

_" But I hope that…..well….what friendship was build between us in that far-away place….will not be destroyed by a mere difference in rank"_

Hughes snorted at this, but Roy knew better than to respond to that. He knew that of all people in the room...hell, in the entire military, Hughes was the one that didn't mind in the least….sure he outranked him now, but they were best friends….because Hughes treated Roy no different from everybody else….perhaps that was why Roy liked him so much……

_" As you superior officer, I will expect obedience and respect…..and lot's of coffee to go with that of course"_

Hawkeye had to stifle a laugh at that, placing her hand at her mouth and pretending she coughed. She knew that Roy was often scolded by Colonel Forrer for drinking too much coffee at work….

_" As well as you can expect me to do my best to stay here or else you might get stuck with a Colonel who is even worse than me…"_

Roy's smile faded a bit as a sudden thought crossed his mind. If he just didn't…….

If he just didn't do THAT, they would have been stuck with Colonel Forrer……

scrap that first one…..

Sergeant Forrer…

* * *

Camping wasn't Roy's thing. Really, I mean…..no soft mattresses, no 3 course meals, no reading a newspaper while sitting in a comfortable chair near the fireplace in the evening….

He wasn't spoiled…..Okay, so maybe a little, but Roy would rather run a lap around the camp naked than admitting to that. Oh sure, some women and men would love to see him do that…..or so he thought, grinning a bit at the thought of Hawkeye staring with her mouth open wide enough to catch flies…

Anyway… for the moment Roy decided that it was for the better to adjust to the camp on the muddy hill in this Godforsaken place. He had no idea how long they would be here…..

It all happened so quickly. One day, he was doing some paperwork for Colonel Forrer, the next day he received a letter that he….was to be dismissed from Central?

He only knew that within a day, all forces that could be missed in Central were ordered to gather for inspection. Not a day after they were thoroughly checked by a medic and a shrink no less, they were send out. Just like that. Roy didn't even have the time to explain his absence to his girlfriend or to cancel his date with Terry, whom he was secretly seeing. This only crossed his mind when he sat in the train, bored, but then he noticed a female lieutenant he had never seen before at work. The first thing that came to his mind was " I wouldn't mind sharing a tent with her", before he mentally slapped himself. He had a girlfriend now ( and a girlfriend-to-be waiting on the sideline). He was, as Hughes so fatherly said it, " finally settling down". He had "duties" now, and "responsibilities" and….as Hughes so TACTLESSLY added….he would soon have "babies"…..

Sure, Roy was planning on settling down some day, perhaps even have a kid or two…

Then why didn't he care that he still wanted to ask the brunette's phone number?

Walking around the camp, still bored, Roy looked around and wondered just how he got himself into this mess. Rain was continuously pouring down from the sky as soldiers tried to find shelter in the overcrowded tents, smoke was rising from just outside the city they were supposed to….invade? He still didn't knew anything. Why were they here? Sure, as lieutenant, he did hear some rumors from the higher ranking officers that there was an uprising of some kind. He might even have to kill…..As much as Roy hated the thought of having to take someone's life, he knew that it was the risk he took when he signed up for the military. And even the thought of blood pouring out of a dead body didn't quit his growling stomach…

The smell coming from the field kitchens weren't exactly the promise of the t-bone steak with fries and a fresh caesar salad Roy would die for right now. Sighing, he walked on, hoping to find either the brunette he saw earlier or a snack bar.

He found neither…….the only thing out of the ordinary in the camp were some stray children begging for food and money. He had no idea who allowed them to enter the camp, as it could be dangerous for kids around angry, exhausted soldiers, looking for something or someone to blame for their current misery. But upon seeing a young girl with dark brown hair and some pink strands receiving a bag with some leftovers from the kitchen and the smile it put on her face, Roy knew that he couldn't order them to go away. Perhaps some of those kids could find a meal for their hungry family…at least for tonight

What bothered him more was a small boy, perhaps 8 years old, sneaking around near the officers tent. Well, at least Roy believed it was an officers then, since the fabric was more expensive and didn't have any holes in it. The boy must have seen it too, perhaps he was hoping to find something of value to steal. It only made Roy wonder if he would still stick to his moral's if he would be in the same position as the boy….

As soon as he apprehended Roy, he quickly dashed out of the camp, knowing that he was caught. Roy looked at the kid who ran like he was about to be shot. He felt spoiled all right. These children….these people, these….what were they called again….Ishabal people….

They probably never even had a T-bone steak with fries…..

So what was he complaining about?…..well…, okay, so his stomach answered that one…

Too occupied with his own thought, Roy didn't realize that he was slightly leaning against one of the tent's poles, it was already giving in more and more. And just when Roy came to the part where he wondered how much it would cost if he served an entire city T-bone steak with fries, the pole gave away, Roy's body followed as he didn't even had the time to catch himself.

Within seconds the secret meeting that was going on inside was roughly disturbed, as Roy came crashing into the tent, knocking over a table and sending several objects on it crashing to the floor….

All the officers sprung up immediately, grabbing their guns and pointing them at Roy….

" _Who are you! Are you a spy?"_

" _No Furher-sir this is Lieutenant Mustang…"_

" _Does he know this is a private meeting!"_

" _I'm very sorry sir, but…"_

" _Hush! The stones!"_

Roy barely listened to his superior officer Colonel Forrer argue with the Furher about his presence, for he could only stare at the small red rocks that were laying on the ground before him, a strange kind of red light radiating from them, and Roy felt like he could almost touch the alchemic energy that was pouring out of them….

The dead silence that greeted him when he looked up was almost deafening. All the high-ranking officers in the tent just stood there, gazing at him and the red stones he was holding in the palm of his hand. Somehow it looked like they were all holding their breaths. What were they so scared of? And what surprised Roy even more was why the Furher didn't send him away immediately….

What had he gotten himself into?…….

Tbc.


End file.
